The USA Today 301 was a race marred by multiple cautions and a rain delay, and graced by a Christopher Bell masterclass. Yet, familiar rivals Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin helped birth one of the most notable interactions heading out of New Hampshire. All thanks to Kyle’s spotter, Tyler Monn, who was pretty upset at his driver for allowing Denny some extra space on the track. But Kyle’s hilariously profane radio shutout of his spotter truly set the issue into motion. And now it appears that Hamlin has approved of Larson’s on-track sentiments on the post-race release of his podcast, ‘Actions Detrimental’.

All the drama erupted only a few laps after the Stage 3 restart. Denny had won the previous cycle spanning 115 laps. Larson took two tires on the pit stop to lead the race off pit road for the next 116. Tyler Reddick and Michael McDowell stayed out and restarted Stage 3 on the front row. Then, as the rain clouds and damp conditions began to roll in, so did the cautions. However, as Reddick and Larson battled for the lead a few laps before an impending red flag for rain around Lap 220, Denny Hamlin was observed to be dirty racing, as per Tyler Monn from the racetrack. 

Denny Hamlin agrees with Kyle Larson’s NSFW radio response to spotter

Monn’s feathers were ruffled when Hamlin and Larson exchanged some paint for the P2 spot before Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr. tangled to bring out the 7th yellow of the race. Denny’s co-host, Jared Allen, cited the now viral interaction on the podcast, probing for Hamlin’s opinion. Larson’s radio had crackled in at the time, with Monn’s voice letting the driver know: “He [Hamlin] runs you like that all the time. You know why? Because you let it happen.” As Allen explained the subsequent events to Hamlin, “Kyle replied with a subtle ‘shut the f*** up’ about you running, Kyle.”

With a sly grin appearing on his face, assumably at the ‘viral’ gravity of his co-host’s statement, Hamlin stated, “I agree with Kyle Larson. Tyler should shut the f*** up, ‘cause does he say that when Kyle squeezes guys up high? Probably not.” The #11 driver continued to elaborate on his statement, citing the conditions that visibly warranted some hard racing on the track, “You know the thing about spotters is that they are so biased to their guy and that’s what they need to be at times, right? But we’re racing for a win. There’s drops on our windshield, and the reason that me and Kyle race so closely at times is: A) because we’re usually racing for a win. And (B) neither will give each other an inch… “

Providing even more justification for his side of the story for all those interested, especially Monn, Hamlin explained his due reflections on the duo’s track position from the time. He remembers thinking, in his mind, “Did I not leave enough room there?” But after careful reflection and reviews, he cleared himself of his self-assigned charges mentioned above. Instead, Hamlin wondered, “What the hell were we doing door-banging each other down the front straightway?”

On a day when a certain #20-numbered Joe Gibbs Toyota was faster than the Hendrick Chevys and the SHR Fords, their #11 driver talked about his four-tire call at the end of Stage 2 and compared it to Larson’s two-tire strategy which truly sets the premise for the incident. “So at that point… I’m on four tires, right? I’m obviously faster than he is. I was faster than him all day long and then he’s on two tires which is a deficit, but he was trying down outrun the 45, and he couldn’t quite get that pass finish. But I was coming quickly, right? So the ability of him to be able to hold me off in that scenario was going to be little to no percentage,” explained Hamlin.

Finally, he came straight to the point and outlined the necessary reasons with his unfiltered commentary. “So the reason that we make contact is because I’m like ‘I don’t have time to be screwing with you here.’ Like I got to get clear. You’re not going to hold me off, which means you’re not going to win the race. So we just won’t give each other an inch to clear. And then you know off of turn four, the next lap… I run him up because I’m like, ‘F** this dude…I can’t keep d*cking with you here. I got to run down this 45. We got water on the windshield.’”

Converging his sentiments to support Larson’s, Hamlin would quote, “It’s just two guys that are racing hard for the race win.” He also touched on how Monn’s heat-of-the-moment radio chatter did not “bother” him, and if Larson had to make the same move on him to gain an advantage, he would “understand why.” To conclude the dialogue, Denny made a controversial statement that may hit a little close to home for all NASCAR faithful: “It’s just the difference from what spectators see too actually what’s going on the actual racetrack. So that’s all I have to say about it…”

Are Tyler Monn’s frustrations justified?

In Monn’s defense, his frustrations are probably justified, primarily due to the uproar surrounding a few tangles between his #5 and Chris Lambert’s (Denny’s spotter) #11 last weekend at Iowa, before both teams finished outside the top 20. And some more before that at Dover, where Denny held off Larson on the last few laps, thanks to some air-blocking. Or before that, at almost every race since Larson and Hamlin raced against each other in the Cup Series for the first time, at the 2013 Bank of America 500 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. After all, that’s what true champions do. It does not help Hamlin’s case that he still does not have the privilege to call a single Bill France Cup his own, unlike Larson, the 2021 champion of the NASCAR Cup Series.

When all the rain dried up in New Hampshire, Larson finished his race just outside the top 3 at P4. Denny wasn’t so lucky and struggled a little with Goodyear’s Wet Weather Tires on the rain-delayed 82 laps to place P24, his second finish in that position for two consecutive weeks.

Hence, it is safe to say that Denny Hamlin’s sometimes over-aggressive advances aren’t all that unnecessary, especially considering his increasing age and undying hunger. Only last week at Iowa, Larson had shed all blame off his Joe Gibbs rival for a three-wide crash with Daniel Suarez, which resulted in Larson finishing dead last in the field among all cars that did not end their races early. Besides Larson’s humble greatness and Hamlin’s eerily silent hunger have complemented each other with battles to enthrall audiences throughout the years and will for at least a few more, especially like the one on display most recently at New Hampshire.

Tyler Monn’s concern is understandable. But the high-speed, spine-chilling, rip-roaring excitements of NASCAR that has often involved some good old-fashioned bumping-and-banging since its very existence? Now that’s tradition, and some would even call it: almost uncompromisable.