Erik Jones will drive the No. 11 for the remainder of the Bristol race after Denny Hamlin experienced spasms earlier in the Food City 500.
When Sunday's NASCAR race resumed after a nearly four-hour delay, one of its biggest stars was not in the field at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Denny Hamlin removed himself out of the No. 11 car after he began suffering spasms in his neck and back around Lap 12 of the scheduled 500-lap event. When rain placed the Food City 500 under the red flag, Hamlin elected not to rejoin the race when NASCAR restarted the race after 3 hours and 58 minutes.
Joe Gibbs Racing selected Erik Jones to substitute.
"I pulled something in my neck to upper back," Hamlin told Fox Sports 1. "I started going backward because the pain was bothering me quite a bit. I stretched it out, and we'd been working it the last few hours. I'm not 100 percent. With this format, it's all about winning, and there's no way I'd be able to compete for a win. It's just doing my team a complete injustice to run a bunch of laps."
Jones, 18, drives in the Xfinity Series for JGR and earned his first victory in NASCAR's No. 2 division last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Jones had never competed in the Sprint Cup Series prior to Sunday.
Because Hamlin started Sunday's race he will be credited for whatever finish Jones earns and receive the accompanying points. Hamlin is virtual lock to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup having won March 29 at Martinsville Speedway.
"It's something that will go away, I just pulled something," Hamlin said. "I've just got to go try and win Richmond next week."
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