Undoubtedly, Cup Series is NASCAR’s top-tier division. From the level of competition on offer, and the revenue each event generates, Cup Series has been the fan favorite for years. While it is a dream for any budding racer to be on the Cup roster, the recent patterns have exposed a rather alarming trend. With money being ‘the’ factor rather than being ‘a’ factor in motorsports, talent, and skill certainly have taken a back seat. And this distressing trend is what prompted Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner and 3-time Cup champion, Tony Stewart to blast the privileged rich kids in today’s sport while announcing Josh Berry for his team, Stewart Haas Racing.

Recently, another veteran of the sport, Denny Hamlin also cited how great it is to bear the fruits of your hard work, mentioning his guest, William Byron, and SHR’s new driver Josh Berry and his early grinding days in the sport.

Denny Hamlin Sides With Tony Stewart, Mentioning a Lesser-Known Similarity Between William Byron, Josh Berry, and Himself

Last week certainly was a treat for racing fans. With the arrival of the Xfinity sensation to Stewart’s SHR lineup, fans lauded the veteran for handing the opportunity to the rightful man. Moreover, it was Stewart’s bold remarks at the media briefing that caught the attention of the NASCAR nation.

Despite the rising trend of rich kids buying their way into the teams without attaining the required experience and skill set, Stewart slammed the privileged ones stepping over talented drivers. He said, “I am not interested in some kid’s father coming and buying their way into the Cup Series. I have zero interest in that.” The veteran added, “We want guys that earn their way, that work hard, that understand the values that it takes to be a top-tier driver – not one that just got his high school diploma and now all the sudden he’s a Cup driver.”

With the legend making his point loud and clear, this week’s Action Detrimental also resonated with Stewart’s ideal. Hamlin joined his guest, the 2017 Xfinity Series champ, William Byron and his co-host. They actively discussed Byron’s amateur career and his early days in the sport to the extent that the 42-year-old was stunned to hear about the 25-year-old’s rich racing background and asked, “So you’ve been doing real life race car driving for 10 years, is that right?”

To which Byron responded by acknowledging his background. Hamlin then briefed about his early days, racing in local dirt tracks and wanting to be a Southside speedway local race hero. “I wanted to be the guy that when he get to the short track like everyone grabs their stopwatch to see like what times he running you know and just everything happened so quickly, I went from late models to the cup in 18 months. So it was just really really quick and it’s great to see that like your talent and you win, you make it to the next level, right?” said Hamlin. 

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver then went on to wish Kevin Harvick‘s replacement at SHR, saying, “And Josh Berry this week is another guy that you know was getting the cup, on his merit, his accomplishment.” By drawing out a close similarity between their amateur days, Hamlin not only sided with veteran Stewart but also revealed how his parents helped him traverse the tough road.

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Hamlin Credits His Mother as a Pillar of Support During His Early Days

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Even though, Tony Stewart’s nepotism rant got him in trouble as fans soon pointed to his drivers, Cole Custer and Riley Herbst, SHR’s latest driver may have dismissed the argument as Stewart chose the perfect replacement for the outgoing Harvick in Josh Berry.

And mentioning his grinding days was Hamlin, who mentioned how his skeptical parents supported the driver’s passion wholeheartedly. He said, “It’s crazy about like how much you know, commitment it takes, my parents were the same way, I mean my mom was into it but until like they had a powderpuff race at the dirt track in Million motor raceway that I used to race at until she got into the go-cart and ran the om’s race like at that point on, she was hooked to you know being my supporter and showing up and supporting my racing.”

Furthermore, the 42-year-old also shared his humble beginnings, clawing his way to the top. “Dad always you now he would, it was a combination of him and my mom on the financial side you know had very regular jobs and keeping it going but I was, I was gonna be content you know working at my dad’s trailer shop.”

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With that being said, one thing is certain. Hours and hours of strenuous grind rewards you with skill and skill trumps talent any given day.