Sunday’s win at Pocono was meant to be a special one for Denny Hamlin, considering his 5oth Cup Series win put him in an elite tier of NASCAR. But all that everybody, including Hamlin, was talking about after the race was the incident between the JGR driver and Kyle Larson with seven laps to go. Hamlin seemingly ran Larson into the wall, with both sides interpreting the incident differently.
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Not only did the episode lead to the crowd booing the 23XI owner after the race, but it also led to Kyle Larson unleashing on Hamlin’s on-track behavior and off-track personality.
Kyle Larson unpacks on Denny Hamlin after the race
Speaking to the media, the Hendrick driver was asked how he felt about Hamlin after the incident, considering the two of them are really good friends. A disappointed Larson made sure that the sarcasm in his words was not lost, saying, “I mean, it is what it is. We’re friends. Yes, this makes things shitty and awkward. You know, whatever. He’s always right. All the buddies know Denny’s always right. I’m sure he was in the right there as well. I’m not going to let it tarnish our friendship on track, but I am pissed. I feel like I should be pissed.”
On whether he plans to race Hamlin differently, the 2021 Cup champion said, “At this point I think I have to. Like I said, I’ve never had to apologize to him about anything, anything I’ve done on the racetrack. I can count four or five times where he’s had to reach out to me, oh man, I’m sorry I put you in a bad spot there.”
The response from @KyleLarsonRacin. 👇 pic.twitter.com/4QIl7Hykfl
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 23, 2023
Kyle Larson does not want Denny Hamlin’s apology unless…
Larson was also asked if Hamlin had retaliation coming his way if he did not apologize, to which he replied, “No, I don’t need an apology. Who knows, he might not be sorry, and I don’t want him to say sorry if he’s not sorry. It just, it just is what it is. If he was to call me and say hey let’s go golf on Wednesday I’d probably go golf, like, are you still my buddy, but I’m, I’m obviously you know mad about the on-track stuff.
It will indeed be fascinating to see if Larson races Hamlin differently from the next race, something he is still cryptic about. One can only hope their relationship off the track is not affected by this incident.
