“It’s Not Good for the Sport” – Denny Hamlin Fears NASCAR’s Ego Will Be the Beginning of Its Demise

Denny Hamlin firing shots at NASCAR is a common phenomenon now. While the Cup Series driver remains one of the most popular names in the sport, his relationship with the governing body remains a sweet and sour one. With Hamlin not habituated to mince his words, he once again came out, slamming NASCAR for its approach.

It is no secret how Hamlin remains unhappy with the ongoing charter negotiations between teams and NASCAR. While he has criticized the ruling body time and again for its decision-making, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver laid out a subtle warning for NASCAR recently.

Denny Hamlin uses Kyle Larson’s example to warn NASCAR of its actions

With Kyle Larson attempting The Double a couple of weeks ago, he failed to compete in the Coca-Cola 600. While NASCAR’s rules demand the driver start all the Cup Series, the Hendrick Motorsports superstar unsurprisingly applied for a waiver. Despite the governing body known to grant such waivers, NASCAR dragged the matter but eventually cleared the #5 driver to be eligible for the playoffs.

Surprisingly, the decision came after days of debate and controversy. Given Kyle Larson’s reputation, it didn’t go down well with many, including Denny Hamlin. The 23XI Racing co-owner lashed out at NASCAR in the recent episode of his podcast “Actions Detrimental.”

The discussion started with Denny Hamlin discussing how the financial stress eventually prompted Stewart-Haas Racing to shut down its operations next year. Hamlin felt that had NASCAR helped out with its media share of revenue, the situation wouldn’t have arisen.

Speaking about NASCAR and its approach, the veteran driver criticized the ruling body’s stubbornness. He said, “I feel as though for many years and this kind of goes into the Larson thing as well. NASCAR has felt like the show will go on with or without you. I don’t know that that is necessarily as true today as it used to be.”

Hamlin added, “There are always superstars coming in and out. We had a lot of young talent coming through the roots and it’s just sponsorship was all plentiful and it was all always like when you didn’t do what they wanted you to do, it was take it or leave it and this is our show, our sandbox and if you don’t like it, get out and the show’s going to run on this weekend.”

While Denny Hamlin feared NASCAR’s approach of “take it or leave it” doesn’t bode well anymore, he used the example of Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott to explain his perspective. He said, “I don’t think you can treat [like] that, our sport is not like that anymore. And if you ruffle the feathers of a Chase Elliott or a Kyle Larson now, you got a team that says ‘Alright you want it to go on without us, we’re out.'”

Understandably, Hamlin felt such actions could end up haunting NASCAR. He said, “I just feel as though these are the kind of things that knock out the leg of your stool and it just if you keep having these things that show splinters it just is never, it’s not good for the sport long term. And I want to see what’s good for the sport.”

While Denny Hamlin expressed it candidly, he didn’t hold back in criticizing the ruling body for getting offended too easily.

Denny Hamlin slams NASCAR authorities for being too sensitive with their stance

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Love him or hate him, Denny Hamlin isn’t one to shy back from his opinion. While he slammed NASCAR for being too controversial with Kyle Larson’s waiver, the JGR driver also criticized the ruling body for being vulnerable with its approach.

Speaking on the same episode of his podcast, Hamlin said, “I need to think carefully about how I word this, and it isn’t going to (come across right) for sure, but I feel as though they get offended very easily. They are very sensitive people.”

He added, “They believe they are the show in the U.S. and if you participate in NASCAR, you shouldn’t participate in anything else…and I just think they don’t like playing second fiddle to anyone. There is someone in NASCAR headquarters that doesn’t like being second fiddle and believes if you’re going to be over here, you need to be over here, and you’re ours now.”

While Denny Hamlin went unfiltered here, he felt NASCAR had a massive role to play in Stewart-Haas Racing shutting its shop. Additionally, the governing body’s handling of Kyle Larson’s playoff waiver and the dragged charter negotiations have certainly added more fuel to his frustration.

It only makes one wonder if NASCAR is heading in the right direction by making some of its best teams and drivers unhappy.