Denny Hamlin was already feeling down on himself, his confidence waning in the face of a series of missed opportunities to win races.
Then came his latest here-we-go-again moment, a poorly timed pit stop.
And finally, his redemption as he overtook Jeff Burton on the 427th lap and went on to win the Goody?s 500, a victory he said he hopes will be a turning point for him.
?When you get so close to winning so many races and something bad happens or things just don?t work out in your favor at the end and you end up losing a win, it?s tough to maintain confidence,? Hamlin said Sunday after notching his fourth career victory.
?Your self-esteem starts going down. It takes a toll on you.?
And there?s nothing like a trip to Victory Lane to repair it.
Hamlin had twice finished in the top three on the smallest, tightest track in the series, and said he felt like bad luck had let several other wins slip away. Visit GoTickets for Daytona 500 Tickets and Las Vegas NASCAR Packages
At Atlanta three weeks ago, he had just moved into second place when his power steering failed. In the next race at Bristol, a fuel pickup problem on the restart of a two-lap sprint to the finish cost him a chance to win, and he finished sixth.
