In a nearly 40-minute interview, Daniel Hemric returned to a common theme – perspective.
Hemric mentioned his perspective or acknowledged that someone else has a different one, nine times.
In 2022, Hemric’s perspective is unique.
While a lot has changed for him since last November, Hemric is on very familiar ground.
What’s new? Some answers can be found on his new firesuits.
There’s the Xfinity Series patch that identifies him as the 2021 series champion. He earned that patch with his last-lap pass of Austin Cindric last November at Phoenix Raceway, simultaneously claiming his first NASCAR victory across all three national series.
That win came with Hemric driving for Joe Gibbs Racing. Now, his firesuits have Kaulig Racing’s logo.
Fresh off his title, Kaulig became the sixth team of his NASCAR career. But in that change is a return to something old for Hemric.
Kaulig Racing’s shop is located on the campus of Richard Childress Racing in Welcome, North Carolina. There he raced in Xfinity from 2017-18 and earned Cup Series Rookie of the Year in 2019.
“Some things never change, and it’s still a 55-minute drive to get there and a 55-minute drive home,” Hemric told SPEED SPORT. “I talked about appreciating that stuff … my time here on the campus at RCR. I’m not sure when you quit saying ‘new father,’ but as a newer father still and with more things to balance and juggle in your life, I actually appreciate that drive. I appreciate, being able to make phone calls I need to make or just having some time to think through that drive. You learn how to put value on that time, of growing in that aspect. Being here and knowing faces, knowing names, seeing that as much as they change a lot of it’s still the same.”
In one aspect, his relationship with former team owner Richard Childress, is back on track.
Soon after RCR’s cars returned from participating the Clash at the L.A. Coliseum, he found himself laying underneath Tyler Reddick’s No. 8 car with Childress. They discussed what had caused Reddick’s car to break while leading the exhibition race.
“It’s hard to do that with somebody or individual that you don’t know or trust or can’t communicate with yet,” Hemric said. “So I have that line of communication, and look forward to hopefully using that to help all of us grow and continue to strengthen the alliance.”
Kaulig Racing’s alliance with RCR is where Hemric’s unique perspective came up again.
When he was driving with RCR, Matt Kaulig’s team was still an upstart organization with one full-time Xfinity team.
Now, Hemric is one of three full-time Xfinity drivers for the team. This year also marks Kaulig’s first year of full-time competition in the Cup Series with two cars. Hemric will drive one of those Cup cars in seven points races.
“I remember coming here to RCR in 2017 and they (Kaulig) were forefront in the middle of our competition meetings, because they were new to an alliance with RCR,” Hemric said. “So that is a huge amount of growth. And the amount of success they’ve been able to do throughout that time is pretty unheard of, right? As you look at it from the outside looking in, which is where I always stood until this year, was that it starts with leadership and Matt Kaulig gives everyone under this Kaulig Racing banner all the opportunity, all the support, loosens the reins enough to let them make decisions, from Chris Rice and that river flows downstream.
“So I think because of seeing that growth from the early beginnings to now, walking into Kaulig and seeing where it’s at, there is more perspective to it than I think some of (his past teams) were because they were there, they were established, I didn’t see them grow and build.”
Perspective is also key to the driver dynamic Hemric is part of now.
Hemric, who just turned 31, has teammates in 40-year-old A.J. Allmendinger and 32-year-old Landon Cassill.
Together, the trio has combined to make 1,168 starts across all three of NASCAR’s national series. They also have their fair share of career peaks and valleys.
Cassill has his most competitive ride in roughly 10 years and, like Hemric until last November, is seeking his first NASCAR victory.
“We talked about perspective, you know how that changes,” Hemric said. “I look at the younger version of myself, the younger version of maybe, I don’t wanna speak for them, but Landon or an A.J., but these individuals that come in a sport and have success or see success, and you just think it’s going to be there (forever). And then all of a sudden, it deteriorates faster than you can blink, and you don’t know what’s next. Right? But you got to continue to show up and keep that work ethic there to make sure you are still part of the story or at least figure out how to become part of the story (again).
“And I think all of us have experienced things (to where) we don’t have any of that new fresh young guy on the block view of it. But I think we come with a view of experience.”
Hemric jokingly observed that early on it will be established “if we’re more stubborn than I thought we were or not.”
Again, Hemric returned to perspective, and that “I think you can only think about your own.”
“I think about going into meetings and being dead set on ‘my car did this, or I need this change with people or personnel’ and so on and so forth,” Hemric said. “I think as you develop, you develop a different view of that … you learn to try to do more with these things (points to ears) and less of this (makes talking motion). And I’m hoping that, with all three of us kind of being in those scenarios that we’ve all learned and grown and, hopefully, leads to what we want to be the most successful season they Kaulig Racing’s ever experienced.”