Denny Hamlin opened up for the first time about the death of his father.
Hamlin’s father, Dennis, 75, died from the injuries he sustained in a tragic house fire at Hamlin’s parents’ home in Gaston County, N.C., on Dec. 28, which had also left his mother, Mary Lou, injured.
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Ahead of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, the NASCAR star sat down for an interview with Fox ahead of Sunday’s race at Daytona International Speedway, recalling the moment he found out what had happened and the frenzied drive he made to his parents’ home.
“I got a call from my sister that said the parents’ house is on fire, the whole house is gone.” he said. “My mom took him from the bedroom to outside in the front yard. I was just driving so fast to try to get there and they said they had already been taken to the hospital.”
Hamlin’s father had already been dealing with late-stage Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, the NASCAR driver and owner said during the interview.
Denny Hamlin’s parents, Denny and Mary Lou. Facebook/Mary Lou Clark Hamlin
Mar Lou survived the fire and is still recovering.
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Hamlin said that seeing his father’s body for the first time in the hospital really made it hit home for him.
“What made it real was seeing my dad,’ Hamlin said. “I saw him laying there after he had passed, I just knew that it was real in that moment. Obviously I saw how burned he was and, you know, at that time I felt for my mom. She saw it all first-hand.”
A fire broke out at a Stanley, N.C. home owned by NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin on Sunday, December 28, 2025. Lucia-Riverbend Fire Department
Denny Hamlin is pictured Feb. 13. Imagn Images
Mary Lou has been recovering well and was in Florida for Sunday’s Daytona 500 to see her son compete.
Hamlin said in the sit-down that he was “confident” that his dad was up in heaven with his best friend George and that they were “going to watch me race on Sunday for another Daytona 500.”
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Hamlin’s race ended on Lap 124 when “The Big One” arrived, and his car got caught up in the 20-car crash.
While he didn’t reach victory lane as a driver, he did reach it Sunday as a co-owner of 23XI Racing and, whose ownership group also includes NBA legend Michael Jordan, as their driver, Tyler Reddic,k too home the win.
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