Denny Hamlin Feels Joey Logano Went Overboard in Brutal Rant Against Teammate Austin Cindric

Joey Logano is usually a composed guy, rarely losing his temper publicly (at least not lately). Yet at Talladega, even he reached his boiling point — this time with his own teammate, after what he believed was a costly mistake. Denny Hamlin recently weighed in on the situation during his latest podcast episode.

Austin Cindric found himself in the crosshairs when he failed to give Logano the push he needed to outpace Bubba Wallace at the end of Stage 2. This handed Wallace the stage win. Although Cindric appeared to do everything in his power to shove Logano forward, the field stacked up quickly. This forced him to lift off the throttle to avoid wrecking both cars — something Logano either missed or chose to ignore.

The moment Stage 2 ended, Logano erupted on the radio, fuming, “Way to go Austin, way to go, you dumb f**k. Way to f***ing go. What a stupid s**t. You just gave it to him. Gave a Toyota a stage win. Nice job. Way to go. What a dumba**. Put that in the book again.”

By the time he faced the media after the race, he had calmed down and remarked, “Glad to see one of us win it.” Yet, Denny Hamlin took a jab at Joey Logano.

Questioning the hotheadedness of the entire Team Penske camp, he quipped, “What is it about these Penske guys that lose their mind? I mean, you just ripped Austin a new one. These guys are hot under the collar.”

Offering his two cents on Logano’s outburst, Hamlin pointed out that such a tirade might be justified if Cindric had pushed another driver past Logano, adding, “You kind of let it go. But he was just going on and on, and it’s like, he thought it was just a given that he was going to win this thing if Cindric would have done his job properly.

“Which Cindric said, “I was trying to do my job properly and not wreck your a**.” I don’t know, man, these guys, they got some wires crossed when they put that helmet on.”

Denny Hamlin also questioned the point of blowing off steam over the radio, arguing that venting in the heat of the moment does little to mend fences. According to him, the real calculation would come behind closed doors, during Monday or Tuesday’s team meetings — a conversation Hamlin himself would rather avoid.

Cindric’s response to Joey Logano’s rant

During the post-race media session, Cindric fielded questions about the dust-up — about Logano’s anger over handing the stage win to Bubba Wallace. Addressing the situation, Cindric remarked that he understood Logano’s frustration, especially since he did not have the full picture in the heat of the moment.

He explained that such issues are a regular part of team dynamics, with several meetings centered around maintaining trust and teamwork. According to Cindric, it takes constant upkeep, and the conversations are rarely easy or pleasant. Sharing his side of the story, Cindric said that during Stage 2, he found himself boxed in and was focused on not wrecking the cars ahead of him, including Logano.

Describing it as “a messy end to the stage,” Cindric admitted that he, Josh Berry, and Logano could have handled the situation more wisely, ultimately letting an opportunity slip through their fingers. However, with the trophy safely delivered to the Penske garage at the end of the day by the #2 car, all was seemingly water under the bridge.