Kaulig President Calls Out Denny Hamlin’s Pit Road Tantrum After Being Outsmarted

Could Denny Hamlin have avoided the unnecessary meltdown at the Charlotte Motor Speedway against Chris Buescher? Well, the short answer to the question is yes, given how the pit stall maps revealed that Hamlin indeed could have backed up and avoided hitting the #17 exiting the pit road during the Coca-Cola 600.

Hamlin even threatened to wreck Buescher’s car if he didn’t stop cutting him short on the pit road. “You hear me, 17? Park in your f**king box or I will stomp your bumper.” Fortunately, calmer heads did prevail after all, as both drivers were seen exchanging a peaceful dialogue during the rain break.

However, Kaulig Racing President Chris Rice wasn’t impressed with how Denny Hamlin reacted to the situation. He even stated that cutting short your rivals on the pit road is one of the tactics used by drivers. And shared the example of when similar tactics unfolded on the pit road but none of the drivers lost their cool.

Cutting short your opponents on the pit road is part of the competition

NASCAR drivers are always on the lookout to make gains on the pit road. It is the most effective way to advance further in the field without having to race against the opposition. And, interestingly, cutting off your rivals intentionally in their pit box is also a cheeky strategy that drivers employ during the race.

This was further explained well by Chris Rice on the Door Bumper Clear Podcast. “He shouldn’t be mad; that is the part of competition. You block the guy in behind you that you’re racing against. You’ve gotta know this Chris, that he’s going to do that. Chris Buescher and that team played that scenario out before they ever came out there.”

Rice further explained how his driver, Daniel Hemric, also made use of the pit strategy, against Joey Logano. “31 car out qualifies the 22 a lot, and he picks on the front of him, thinking that he’s gonna be running worse. Well, guess what the 22 had to do all night. Drive around the 31, backed the 31 up all night long, and really never got the fussing … Joey Logano is the hardest guy to pass on the racetrack and the hardest guy to pit around the pit stall. So I think that that is part of racing, and if you’re mad, man, so be it.”

Interestingly, Denny Hamlin did acknowledge the use of tactics in how teams choose pit stalls close to the cars they feel like they can compete with. And while the easy solution for Hamlin was to pit back in his box, that wasn’t an optimal solution, given how he had to evade the #24 pit crew while coming on the pit road.

Hamlin clears the air by not utilizing the empty space behind his pit box

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Surprisingly, the JGR star was very well aware of the fact that he could pit further back in the pit box, and avoid the tussles with the cars ahead of him. However, most people didn’t realize how difficult it was for him to make the entry in his box, trying not to hit William Byron’s pit crew members, who were already out doing their job keeping the #24 car up in the field.

Sharing the fine details of what led to his troubles on Pit Road, Hamlin, via the Action Detrimental Podcast, said, “Yes, I had an opening behind me but the timing was terrible every time. Because the 24 was always two spots ahead. He would pull in, his tire changers would run out on the pit road. I would have to swing around them, so that would get me swung out to the right, but if I drove straight from where I had to swing out to get around his people. I would be nosed into my stall crooked.”

Moreover, Next-Gen cars are really not apt for making a sharp turn, therefore leaving Hamlin with no option but to back out. The only solution to this trouble is to get a better starting position with qualifying and secure the best available pit box selection.