Denny Hamlin won Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover, leading 67 laps and surviving three tense restarts in the final ten laps. Holding off teammate Chase Briscoe, Hamlin crossed the finish line 0.310 seconds ahead of Briscoe, marking the No. 19 JGR driver’s second consecutive runner-up finish.
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What raised eyebrows was Hamlin’s ability to fend off competitors on fresher tires despite running on older rubber, a point that fueled fan backlash after Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s comments on the race.
Dale Jr. took to X with his take, which many fans called biased, saying, “Dover was interesting for sure. Great run to the finish. Glad NASCAR gave it the best effort to see the checkered. Indy next.” Fans were quick to challenge his view, calling out what they saw as real issues with the race.
One fan wrote, “The rain was the most interesting part of the race. It’s so ridiculous that a guy on fresher tires cannot pass the leader in this car. And NASCAR just continues to do absolutely nothing to fix it. This car was made for intermediates, but not for any other style track.”
Another bluntly added, “Only thing interesting was the resumption. Before that boring snooze racing.” A third fan chimed in, “This car has to go or have a huge overhaul. Too many type tracks are suffering bad races due to the car.”
Dover was interesting for sure. Great run to the finish. Glad Nascar gave it the best effort to see the checkered. Indy next.
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) July 20, 2025
The race was halted on Lap 386 when heavy rain drenched the track, prompting a red flag. Action resumed roughly an hour and 15 minutes later, with the top seven cars staying out on worn tires.
Ryan Blaney, running eighth, was the first to pit for two fresh tires. On the restart, the fifth row featured the first cars with new right-side tires, with Briscoe on the outside line in tenth.
Briscoe charged through the field, climbing to sixth, but chaos erupted when Christopher Bell spun while attempting to pass Hamlin for the lead. The incident collected William Byron, running fourth, and Noah Gragson, who had stayed out in eighth. Briscoe capitalized on the ensuing restart to line up directly behind Hamlin’s No. 11.
Following another caution triggered by a crash involving Zane Smith and Ryan Preece, Briscoe restarted on the front row alongside Hamlin with fresher right-side tires. Even so, Hamlin held firm, pulling away on the closing lap to notch his second consecutive Dover victory and the 58th win of his Cup career.
The Next Gen car has faced repeated criticism for the racing quality it delivers on short tracks and superspeedways, largely due to the extreme parity that leaves cars on newer tires unable to overtake those on older ones.
The tires appear to serve little purpose beyond simply avoiding blowouts. But now, designed primarily with intermediate tracks in mind, the Gen-7 cars have failed to impress even on those circuits, leaving fans increasingly dissatisfied with the product NASCAR is putting on display.
