Denny Hamlin’s race came to an end in Stage 1 after an engine failure triggered an oil fire on Lap 75 of the 271-lap event at Texas Motor Speedway, making him the first driver to retire from Sunday’s race.
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As flames erupted from the underside of the car heading into Turn 1, the #11 Toyota slid through Turns 1 and 2 before Hamlin brought it to a stop on the backstretch, with thick black smoke billowing from the vehicle.
Although Hamlin exited the car safely and by himself, he was later evaluated at the infield care center. However, it was the commentary from the Fox broadcast booth that drew fans’ attention.
As Hamlin’s car caught fire, Fox analyst Kevin Harvick reacted, “Oh! Oh! And that is second caution of the day. This one for Denny Hamlin blowing up in flames,” before a brief silence. He then added, “Not the Texas barbecue the #11 team wanted to see,” maintaining a light tone as the car burned. Harvick and Bowyer continued with, “He needs to stop,” before turning it over by calling, “Jamie [Little]?”
Reporting what she heard over the radio, Jamie Little said, “Yeah, he just came on the radio and said he lost power, and they told him to recycle the engine, and then just moments later, you saw the flames. And he just came on the radio and said, ‘Well, that was fun, fellas.’ So he is okay, as he climbs from the car right now.”
Fans were left unimpressed by the Fox booth’s lackluster commentary during Hamlin’s fiery exit, especially given the wealth of context they could have provided. For instance, they missed the opportunity to underline that it marked Hamlin’s first DNF of the season and snapping a streak of 21 consecutive lead-lap finishes.
Fire in the No. 11. Denny Hamlin is okay. pic.twitter.com/LjuFx6KyLK
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) May 4, 2025
They also overlooked the early-race miscommunication that derailed Hamlin’s track position. A radio mix-up during the Lap 22 caution caused confusion over a code word, leading Hamlin to stay out while most others pitted. After a conversation with crew chief Chris Gayle, the team elected to pit before the restart, which dropped the #11 to the back of the field in 36th. Hamlin had climbed back to 25th when the engine gave out.
Viewers didn’t hold back on social media. One fan, commenting under the clip posted by Fox: NASCAR’s official X account, wrote, “Booth can’t call a cruise missile smashing into a 100 foot brick wall.” Another compared the coverage unfavorably with Formula 1, stating, “The @F1 coverage makes @NASCARONFOX look soooo bad.”
Anticipation for Amazon Prime’s upcoming NASCAR coverage also surfaced, with one fan writing, “this booth…. my goodness can’t wait for prime to get here already,” referring to the incoming team of Adam Alexander, Steve Letarte, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Another jabbed at the Fox crew, posting, “11 turns into a grenade and there’s crickets from the booth. 2 more races until Amazon Prime. Thank goodness.”
Last year, fans cut Harvick some slack as it was his first full-time season in the broadcast booth. However, the flat response to such a major incident didn’t go down well this time around.
Meanwhile, the fallout from the incident will likely knock Denny Hamlin from his P3 position in the standings. His upcoming podcast should make for interesting listening, especially given the miscommunication, partly on him and partly on the crew, that led to him staying out instead of pitting early in the race.
