The million-dollar question surrounding Denny Hamlin has finally been put to bed: Will he stick with Joe Gibbs Racing or fly the coop? According to the grapevine and confirmed by Joe Gibbs himself, Denny Hamlin has inked a long-term deal with JGR. While many thought this saga would echo the Kyle Busch storyline, the tables have certainly turned.

Recently, the hosts of the Door Bumper Clear podcast pulled this hot potato apart, debating the ins and outs of why Joe Gibbs Racing rolled out the red carpet for Hamlin but gave Busch the cold shoulder.

Does Joe Gibbs consider Denny Hamlin more important than 2x Cup champion Kyle Busch??

Echoes of the past seem to reverberate, with Dale Earnhardt Jr and other NASCAR greats drawing parallels between the Hamlin saga and Busch‘s controversial exit from JGR from last year. In both tales, the song and dance seemed all too familiar.

Yet, as the smoke cleared, Denny Hamlin put pen to paper with JGR. The grapevine buzzed over at the DBC studio, where host Brett Griffin?couldn’t bite his tongue, stating it is clear that “Denny Hamlin means more to Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota than Kyle Busch did. Because they had an opportunity to keep Kyle.” Brad Keselowski‘s spotter and DBC co-host TJ Majors tried to wave off the notion, insisting that JGR did pull out all the stops for Busch, saying, “They tried.”

However, Bubba Wallace‘s spotter Freddie Kraft dismissed Majors’s claim, highlighting potential reasons that made Hamlin the apple of JGR’s eye over Kyle Busch. He argued, “I am telling you now when [Kyle Busch] didn?t stay, you can?t tell me that Joe Gibbs and Toyota couldn?t have put more on the table to keep him. When he said, ‘I have got to get a deal from you, and I don?t want this one; I want another one.’ Well, they could have said, ‘Okay.'”

Kraft also played another card, pointing out the distinction between Kyle Busch owning a Truck Series team and Denny Hamlin owning a Cup squad. Toyota’s five-year strategy and the current strategies of Denny Hamlin and Michel Jordan are quite different from one another. Just keeping Michel Jordan at Toyota is a huge deal.

Watch This Story: Denny Hamlin Accuses Joe Gibbs Grandson of Invoking Dale Earnhardt’s Tragedy on Ryan Blaney No Place To Hide

Lastly, the cherry on top for JGR in retaining Hamlin? The Toyota connection with 23XI Racing. As it stands, only the JGR and 23XI teams have the Toyota badge, though Legacy Motor Club is gearing up to join the Toyota fraternity soon.

Did Toyota tip the scales for Denny Hamlin’s contract renewal?

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Freddie Kraft spun a yarn, suggesting 23XI Racing’s alliance with Toyota, the cr?me de la cr?me of manufacturers, might have been a game-changer, especially amid whispers of Ford trying to court the team.

“I think it?s great for 23XI. Listen, Toyota has the most speed right now. If they don?t win this championship this year, it?s their own fault because their cars are the fastest week in and week out. I know we talked about Ford winning some races there, but across the board, across the manufacturer board, nobody?s faster than Toyota right now,” Freddie opined.

But, reading between the lines, could it be that JGR, recalling the string of wins Kyle Busch netted in his rookie year with Richard Childress Racing, is experiencing a tinge of buyer’s remorse? Is that why they’re pulling out all the stops to prevent another star from leaving their coop?

Read More: Joe Gibbs Comes Clean on Using Clever Ploy To Throw Out Former Neighbor Denny Hamlin: ?It Took Her About 18 Months?