Raleigh, NC – father of NASCAR driver denny hamlin He died and his mother was seriously injured in a weekend fire that heavily damaged the North Carolina home they lived in, authorities said Monday.
Firefighters arrived Sunday night to find a two-story home near Stanley mostly engulfed in flames, the Gaston County Office of Emergency Management and Fire Services said in a news release.
Dennis Hamlin, 75, and Mary Lou Hamlin, 69, were found outside the home suffering from serious injuries, authorities said. Dennis Hamlin later died of his injuries at a hospital, authorities said.
Mary Lou Hamlin was taken to Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Burn Center in Winston-Salem, where she was being treated Monday, officials said.
The structure collapsed due to fire. The cause is under investigation.
Stanley is located about 20 miles northwest of Charlotte.
According to local property tax records and a business document filed with the North Carolina Secretary of State’s office, the home is owned by a company called Von One Real Estate, which lists Denny Hamlin as its manager.
Representatives for Hamlin had not responded to requests for comment as of Monday evening.
Hamlin is one of the premier drivers on NASCAR’s top circuit, having won 60 NASCAR Cup Series races, including the Daytona 500 three times.
The 45-year-old driver for Joe Gibbs Racing has yet to win a Cup points championship. He missed the title during the final race of the season in Arizona last month.
A few weeks earlier, Hamlin had said that his father – who was nearly broke from the financial sacrifices he had to make in trying to get his son into NASCAR – was battling a serious illness and did not have much time left to live.
Hamlin told The Associated Press, “I really know this is my dad’s last chance to see this. I don’t want him to go and never see this moment.”
Hamlin also mentioned his father in emotional testimony this month at the beginning of a federal antitrust trial brought by 23XI Racing against NASCAR, which is owned by Hamlin and Basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan. NASCAR, 23XI Racing and another race team reached a settlement during the trial before jurors could deliberate.
