Some comparisons are inevitable. It appears that on the face of it, people cannot resist the temptation to compare F1 racer Max Verstappen and NASCAR’s Kyle Larson. To be fair, it all started when Kyle Larson claimed that he’s a better overall driver than Max Verstappen since Larson has experience in different racing formats. Kyle Larson has raced in four different stock car racing formats. He has proved his mettle in Dirt Car Racing, IndyCar Racing, and the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup series.

Verstappen too couldn’t keep himself away from responding. He acknowledged Larson’s abilities and avoided comparing himself with the Hendrick Motorsports ace racer. Now, thoughts and talking points are popping up from stalwarts of both racing formats. The latest to share his opinion is NASCAR’s very own Denny Hamlin, who has an interesting take on the whole debate.

Denny Hamlin appears to lean towards Verstappen

The Joe Gibbs Racing #11 has shared the racetrack with Kyle Larson for a long time. Hamlin and Larson have faced each other head-to-head on six different occasions. Hamlin came out as the better of the two every time.  The Joe Gibbs racer is a more balanced, consistent racer. Larson has agility and dominance on his side. Hamlin is placed currently in 3rd place with 783 points. Larson is just a point behind with one win more than Hamlin.

After an intense race at the Michigan International Speedway, Denny Hamlin sat down with Jared Allen. Sharing his thoughts on the whole Larson vs Verstappen debate at the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin said, “I guess Kyle probably brought it on himself by saying he was better. Man, those F1 guys are good, so I just would temper those expectations. I mean why don’t we just say that Kyle’s better on ovals and Max is better on road course. Can we just leave that as a blanket.”

The kind of respect Hamlin carries for Formula 1 as a sport and its racers was evident through his words. Praising the F1 drivers, Hamlin further added, “They’re not running the same thing we’re running and I just I mean those the F1 guys are elite, elite. So, I wouldn’t try to throw shade on any of them because more than likely with any kind of reps especially on a road course even if it’s in a stock car they’re probably going to be pretty damn good.”

Formula 1 had a pretty different dynamic than NASCAR. But Denny Hamlin is hopeful that a certain Lewis Hamilton would surely give stock car racing a try. The Joe Gibbs racer said, “I think Lewis would be the one that would give a NASCAR start a try if there were ever one. I mean Daniel Ricciardo perhaps would but yeah. I just think that it’s such a tough argument to have and you’re going to be good at whatever you practiced and grew up doing.”

However, Denny does not appreciate comparing two athletes from different sports. Hamlin concluded that sports require practice and comparing athletes of two different sports is like comparing apples with oranges. Providing a basketball reference to better explain his argument, Hamlin further said, “Kyle Larson definitely would beat Max Verstappen in a dirt sprint car race because that’s what Kyle Larson has been doing for forever.  And that’s a silly argument, I guess it’s just not you just can’t compare the two. Michael vs LeBron at least it’s like comparable. They play the same sport right and yes rules change but like you can compare stats because it’s the same sport.”

Apparently, Denny Hamlin is not the only voice from NASCAR to share his opinions on the matter. NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick had earlier shared his thoughts too. The 48-year-old, through his comments, implied that Kyle Larson is indeed the better all-round racer than Max Verstappen. The F1 ace racer stuck to a single format, according to Harvick, while Larson had more dynamism in his racing.

On the other hand, everyone saw Larson’s average performance at the Michigan International Speedway. After watching the Hendrick Motorsports driver race on Monday, people started asking whether he’s really the best NASCAR has got.

Larson’s fighting spirit was on leave at Michigan

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The FireKeepers Casino 400 proved to be a disappointment for Kyle Larson. The Hendrick Motorsports racer could only manage to finish 14th in the race. That from a driver with an average finish of 11.73 throughout the season was unusual, to say the least. At Michigan International Speedway, Larson was looking like a shadow of his normal self. The #5 got puzzled with on-track incidents and several cautions. He was lost in the crowd at the restart, something rare in Larson’s career.

After an average performance, critics and Larson skeptics popped up talking about whether it was even right to compare Larson’s racing caliber with that of Max Verstappen. This performance has invited skeptical criticism towards Kyle Larson.

What are your thoughts on Denny Hamlin’s remarks? Do you think Kyle Larson proclaimed the best driver tag for himself a bit too early? Do tell us in the comments.