NASCAR: Denny Hamlin jokes about $300,000 piece of tape after Pocono disqualification
Hamlin says he is selling his Cup Series trophy on Ebay
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Denny Hamlin is doing just fine.
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver and his teammate, Kyle Busch, were disqualified from their one-two finish at Pocono Raceway on Sunday when their cars failed a post-race inspection.
It was the first time that a Cup Series winner had been disqualified since 1960 and the first time the top two finishers suffered the same fate in a single race since 1955.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}NASCAR has revealed the violation was due to a 2-inch wide, 5 ½-inch long, .012-inch thick strip of tape applied beneath the car's vinyl sponsor wrap.
Hamlin celebrated his win before being disqualified. (Logan Riely/Getty Images)
The team declined to appeal and confirmed the additional material was present, saying it was due to a "change in our build process was not properly vetted within our organization."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Third-place finisher Chase Elliott inherited the win and was asked if he planned to request the trophy from Hamlin.
Hamlin and Busch finished first and second in the race. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
"I haven't even really thought about it," Elliott told Fox Sports. "And honestly, if he wants to keep it, he can keep it as far as I'm concerned. He crossed the finish line first. ... I didn't really feel like I earned it on track yesterday."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hamlin apparently has other ideas. He posted a video on Twitter showing him at home eating a meal with the trophy on one side and a bottle of champagne on the other, which he pops open and poured a glass from.
"Live on EBay. 1 tainted trophy and 1 used bottle of champagne," he captioned it.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}However, the trophy, which features an eagle and an outline of the triangular Pocono Raceway, had one significant modification from when he was presented it.
The eagle on the Pocono trophy originally had an M&M's bag in its mouth. (Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
On Sunday, the eagle had a bag of M&M's candy in its mouth courtesy of race sponsor Mars, but Hamlin replaced it with a piece of tape.
"That would be a a piece of clear tape worth about 300k. (Not to be included in sale)," he wrote when asked about it. The amount likely a reference to the prize money he lost with the DQ.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Aside from the hit to his bank account, the disqualification was hardly a bump in the road in Hamlin's season. He already has two race wins, which has secured in a spot in the NASCAR playoffs, while Busch is also in position for a post-season birth courtesy of his win at the Bristol dirt race in April.
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The Hamlin household is also keeping one other souvenir from Pocono. After the race, Hamlin's daughter Taylor retrieved the checkered flag for him, then got in his car and held it out the window as they paraded past the grandstand down the front straight.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}NASCAR posted a photo of Taylor with the flag on Twitter, to which Hamlin responded, "Yeah, good luck getting that back."