Denny Hamlin won his third Daytona 500 on Monday in an exciting photo finish and became only the fourth driver to win it in back-to-back years, but his celebration at the historic achievement was dampened by a near-tragedy when fellow NASCAR driver Ryan Newman crashed violently near the end of the race.
"I notice things are weird. The crowd's not really saying much, there's not much roaring going on. I was supposed to do an interview at the start-finish line, and there's no one there to do that," Hamlin told Cheddar about the eerie aftermath. "I went into Victory Lane and that's when they told me he had a pretty bad accident."
While there had been some criticism at the initial celebrations that took place at the stadium, the Gibbs team apparently was unaware of the severity of the accident at the time.
He went to visit the now-recovering Newman and his family at the hospital to show his support after the race.
"It's a tough, tough finish, obviously. It looks like he'll come out of this, and that's really, really encouraging," Hamlin said. "Once we get down the line, get a few days, weeks down the road, we'll be able to enjoy it on our end."
Hamlin, who drives Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 11 Toyota, reflected on how sometimes those immersed in the sport can take their safety for granted.
Despite the frightening finish, Hamlin still stands among the greats in NASCAR with the other five racers who have won three or more Daytona 500's in the sport's Hall of Fame. While the victorious driver said he knew that the feat was significant, he still had trouble processing the entirety of it in such a short time following the competition.
"I've won now two of the closest finishes in Daytona 500 history. I don't even know what all this means," he said. "It's great to have those trophies sitting in my living room, and I get to think about it well after my racing career is over. And I get to talk to my kids about what all has happened."
The 2020 men's tennis U.S. Open champion, Dominic Thiem, joined Cheddar to discuss his very first Grand Slam title victory. Thiem made history as the first man to come back from two sets down to win at the U.S. Open.
Lou Harris, the founding member of Black Surfing Association Rockaway, offer free surfing lessons to all kids to teach them how to love the water. The national non-profit was founded in California in 1975 to introduce surfing to more African Americans.
Peter O'Reilly, the NFL's executive vice president of club business and league events, talked to Cheddar about the league's new approach to racial inequality issues this year.
The University of Maryland's head football coach, Mike Locksley, joined Cheddar to discuss a new initiative he started, aimed at getting minority coaches elevated to the next level in their careers. The National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches is backed by current and former coaches as well as executives.
Actress and director, Eva Longoria joined Cheddar to discuss her role in establishing the the NWSL's newest team, Angel City as she fights for equal pay in the sport. Longoria also discusses her experience hosting night one of the Democratic National Convention.
Anti-gun violence activist, Manny Oliver, joined Cheddar to discuss an initiative he started following the death of his son, Joaquin, in the Parkland massacre.
Matt Kalish, president of sports betting company DraftKings, talked to Cheddar about NBA legend Michael Jordan joining as an adviser to the company's board.
NBA all-star Jrue Holiday is working to combat systemic racism by donating his remaining salary. The New Orleans Pelicans guard is working with Resilia, a technology platform, to track his donations and ensure change is really happening.
DraftKings shares climbed in midday trading after announcing that basketball legend Michael Jordan would take an ownership stake in the company in exchange for becoming a special adviser to the sports betting site.
The Washington Football Team has named Jason Wright as president, making him the youngest and first Black president in the league. Wright joined Cheddar to discuss the historic feat.
