Dale Jr Confesses Feeling Scared of Losing Denny Hamlin After NASCAR’s Detrimental Take On Ross Chastain Podcast Admission

One of the on-track rivalries that has taken shape in the past few seasons is between Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain. The aggressive dynamic between the two dates back to the 2022 Cup Series race at the World Wide Technology Raceway. The race witnessed an intense tug-of-war between the #1 and #11, and since then, the pair have been going at it. Continuing their tussle, the duo met again at the Phoenix Raceway in the first race at the track earlier this year.

Denny Hamlin once again cornered Chastain to the wall and, following the incident, was fined $50,000 by NASCAR and docked 25 points. After the race, Denny, in an episode of his podcast, Actions Detrimental, had said he felt the penalties imposed by NASCAR were totally worth it. However, #11’s seemingly controversial and careless take on the matter left Dale Earnhardt Jr worried about Denny’s future at his podcast, which was under Junior’s Dirty Mo Media.

Dale Earnhardt Jr felt Denny Hamlin would leave Actions Detrimental after his comments about the Ross Chastain battle

Denny Hamlin has often been at the center of controversy. The 23XI Racing co-owner has been subject to much criticism from the NASCAR community for the same reason. In the podcast episode following his intentional wrecking of Ross Chastain at Phoenix, Hamlin said, “That was worth it though. Let me tell you, because that 50 grand, wherever it was, the points didn’t matter until they did.”

These comments grabbed NASCAR’s attention towards a growing dynamic of aggression between the two drivers. NASCAR feared that the other drivers would also face some collateral damage due to the heated rivalry between the two. While the topic of discussion has slowly lost traction, Dale Earnhardt Jr picked it up in his recent conversation with Denny Hamlin on The Dale Jr Download.

Junior recalled one of Denny’s podcast members being skeptical about the #11 being so straightforward with his comments. “I remember him saying, ‘We want to do this if this is going to make Denny more fans. We don’t want to do it if it makes Denny less fans’. He’s worried that you might get yourself in trouble.”

Revealing his reaction to the controversy, Junior said, “I was in Texas on vacation with Amy and her family when all that went down, and I really thought I was like ‘Denny’s never podcasting again. Denny’s over. He’s going to come here and go, ‘Look, this was fun’.“

Denny Hamlin came after violating the guidelines under Section 4.4B of the Cup Rule Book, which states, “Wrecking or spinning another vehicle, whether or not that vehicle is removed from Competition as a result.”

In the same episode, Junior also asked Denny if he had ever tried to take his time and reconsider the effect of his comments. Denny revealed that while he is mainly in charge of it, he receives suggestions from his content team occasionally.

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Hamlin has specific people concerned about his public image

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Before expressing his fear over losing Denny Hamlin, Dale Jr tried to enquire more about the No.11 driver’s thought process and his team’s perspective when giving out such controversial statements. Junior asked, “Like the Chastain comments, in the moment, has it ever been like, ‘Hey man, are you sure you want to say this?’ Because you create the podcast, you got a little time, so you go, ‘Do I really want to put this out there? Maybe I want to dial that back a little bit’.”

Denny Hamlin is usually joined by his co-host Jarred Allen, one of his long-time friends and partners. Apart from that, he has a team working behind the scenes who sometimes express their concerns.

Disclosing details about the same, Denny added, “They asked me. I mean, Jarred doesn’t ask me as much. Are you sure? There are some people who would care about me getting myself in trouble listening and live or while we are recording.”

Denny’s regular involvement in controversy is not new. While he has never been afraid to speak his mind, it has earned jeers from the fans. In reply, he has remained unaffected by the fandom’s comments and continues to entertain in NASCAR’s top flight.

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