It’s not only the Cup Series where controversies are formed. The Xfinity Series gets its fair share of drama and in a true NASCAR sense, situations get heated. Many fans were unhappy with Corey Heim’s decision to push Austin Hill, as the Richard Childress Racing driver used that to bag the win at Atlanta.

Critics and fans were unhappy that Corey Heim decided to help a Chevrolet driver instead of Chandler Smith, who drives for his mentor’s team. Denny Hamlin has helped Heim reach the position he is in NASCAR today, so it’s only obvious that fans expected him to play to the advantage of Joe Gibbs Racing to help Chandler Smith win. But when that did not happen, there was a barrage of unhappy fans who voiced their minds. Amidst all of this, veteran Denny Hamlin came in to defend Corey Heim.

Denny Hamlin steps up for Corey Heim at Atlanta

Denny Hamlin heard all the talk about Corey Heim betraying his team and helping the RCR driver win the race. When he got behind the mic for his podcast, Actions Detrimental with Denny Hamlin, he took time to discuss not only the Cup Series race where he had a P24 finish in the first round of the playoffs, but also the controversy from the Xfinity Series.

Speaking about his prodigy, Hamlin explained, “I mean, it looked like Corey Heim had a chance to get to the front. Yeah. I think, if I had to sum it up, he was making the best move he could for himself. If you say you’re going to go down there and push Chandler off of turn four and go to the bottom, the top is obviously the preferred groove, right?”

Hamlin explained that Chandler got himself into a strange situation where he did not have enough momentum to pass the race leader. The situation got interesting when the drivers went 4 wide, and Hamlin explained, “I think, very rarely, if not never, would the third-place guy, with no affiliation, choose the bottom line unless it was a direct teammate.”

Explaining the logical choice that Heim had, Hamlin continued, “Corey then went to the high side, pushed Austin past Chandler, and got, you know, right on the edge of getting beside the 40 or Austin Hill. And then, you know, he got into the wall and finished fifth.”

This sparked many questions about his loyalty to his manufacturer, and considering that Hamlin has been a huge influence on Heim’s racing career, fans wanted to know why he did not help Chandler Smith instead.

Hamlin explains that Heim has no connection with Joe Gibbs Racing

Denny Hamlin pondered what Toyota’s stance on the race would be, and after dismissing it as a tough situation, he spoke about Heim again. Defending the driver, Hamlin said, “Corey doesn’t have any alliance or allegiance to JGR, and JGR doesn’t have any allegiance to Corey.”

Considering there are no loyalties in place, the No. 11 JGR driver explained that Heim did what he thought was best at the moment. Summing it up, Hamlin explained that Heim did what he had to try to finish second, and pushing Austin Hill happened to be his best bet.

Ultimately, Heim had a P5 finish, which was better than what he could have gotten by assisting Smith and Hamlin takes that as a win for his prodigy. The podcast wrapped up with Hamlin saying, “I kind of see both sides of it; I really do. That pays your manufacturer, but I just don’t know if one has a connection with the other that would make me believe he should show allegiance to that team.”

Considering the situation that Corey Heim was in, what do you think the best move for him would be? Share your thoughts in the comments below.