“I never knew that the rules were in place, but if I need to take it, I won’t say no, I’ll take it.” Helio Castroneves isn’t apologetic about getting the chance to run the Daytona 500. After all, he has the opportunity to be the only driver after A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti to win the Daytona 500 and Indy 500. Yet, this appearance has a shadow cast over it by the controversial Open Exemption Provision, with Denny Hamlin and other drivers being its strong opposition.

While NASCAR has the chance to bring in new fans to sport with the move, Denny Hamlin slammed this move once again on his podcast.

Denny Hamlin continues his fight against OEP

Ahead of the 2025 NASCAR Cup season, the governing body established a new set of regulations. However, it now seems that these regulations have not been received well. Denny Hamlin has been one of the leading voices against these regulations and he even slammed the officials.

Denny Hamlin said on his podcast, “My opinion on this was that it was desperate, I didn’t like it. I just thought that you’re really doing everything you can to try to get a headline and I still believe it to be true. NASCAR is the highest form of motorsports in the US. So why can’t we act like the big boys and say, ‘If you want to come over here and roll with us? Show me what you got! Go qualify in the race.’ It won’t be that hard. To me as a car owner, we just talked about these Playoff scenarios in which things can happen. Things out of your control can happen.” He was unhappy that the top drivers from other disciplines were being given free passes. NASCAR is no stranger to non-NASCAR drivers competing in the sport. However, more often than not, they are not as competitive as they are in their regular discipline. This also serves to diminish their value as a racer, when compared to seasoned NASCAR stars.

This is why Hamlin wants the guest drivers to actually prove themselves out on the race track and be competitive. Otherwise, are they just there to make up the numbers and fill up the NASCAR grid? If that is the case, then it is a bit disrespectful of the guest drivers’ abilities behind the wheel. Even when Kyle Larson and Fernando Alonso made their respective Indy 500 runs, they had to qualify to compete. Hamlin’s case in point? The 2021 Cup Series finale. Hamlin looked comfortable chasing Truex Jr. for the lead before David Starr’s wreck brought out a caution. In the subsequent shuffle and pitstops, Kyle Larson came out in the lead, effectively handing him the title.

He revealed, “I was one David Starr brake rotor away from winning a championship one year, but that’s the breaks. I’m wondering if David Starr, this is not a knock on David Starr, he was in a car that was not fit to make it all 312 laps. Let’s just say, because there’s been 40 cars in the last Phoenix race. David Starr was ALO, right? He got in, he played a factor in who won the race that day because of his name. He got in, and maybe he didn’t blow a brake rotor. On a restart, he made a mistake and he wiped out one of the contenders. The old rule, he wouldn’t have been in the race because he didn’t qualify into the race. Now you’re just saying f***ing Tom Cruise can go in there, just cause he said he raced in Days of Thunder. Can come in there and compete with the big boys on Sunday, I don’t agree with that. That’s just my opinion on it.”

Now, the crucial factor one must consider here is the aspect of OEP, that it only applies for the Daytona 500. However, Hamlin’s point still stands. Since the Daytona 500 is also a points race, any incident caused by a driver from the OEP could affect the course of the championship.

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What does the NASCAR community have to say about OEP?

The OEP move certainly has its benefits. In a bid to bring new viewers to NASCAR in a time of falling viewership numbers, having international drivers take part in the race might certainly be useful. Yet, that can only happen if the drivers are able to get proper practice behind the car, something that isn’t possible to the fullest extent under current regulations. However, that’s not why a lot of drivers on the grid are unhappy about the decision.

For NASCAR drivers, it’s also about being treated with the respect they deserve. Drivers like Jimmie Johnson, someone who has 7 Cup Series Championships wasn’t given the same benefit and had to qualify for the race on track. Martin Truex Jr., another big name in NASCAR, faced similar treatment.

Two legends, in particular had been quite upset about the decision: Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick. Harvick explained, “I love the intent, and I love the fact that it’s going to attract people from other forms of racing, but I don’t like the fact that it left us on our own… I can promise you that people are going to show up if a Tony Stewart or Dale Jr., myself, or Martin Truex, whoever, right? It would’ve opened the door to take care of your past drivers, and everybody would actually show up for it. I get it that we’re trying to expose it to the world, but forget about our own.”

Gordon echoed his sentiments when he said, “What I’m questioning, or what I need more answers to, is what’s the criteria that dictates, who gets in and who doesn’t? Does it just become a popularity contest, and what again is the popularity are basing it off? Then you’ve got past champion and seven-time champion like Jimmie Johnson; where does he fit in that kind of criteria? That’s my only question about it all, and I don’t have all the answers, but that’s certainly something I’m going to ask NASCAR when I get a chance to.”