Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin have had several run-ins with each other over the last few years. Though they’re friends outside the race track, the spirit of competition forces them to race hard against each other while on it. This was the case at the Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday as well. Fortunately, none of them stepped over boundaries to the level of attracting hate.
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The first altercation between the two went down towards the end of stage two when Larson made the corner wide for himself by running Hamlin up the track. Going under caution, the latter displayed his anger by slamming into Larson’s ride multiple times but eventually calmed down. Going ahead, they once again found each other during the race’s overtimes.
Denny Hamlin is NOT HAPPY with Kyle Larson.
: NBC, with coverage switching to USA Network and NBC Sports App at 7:30ET pic.twitter.com/wWyNJkVNB6
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) June 30, 2024
In the first overtime, Larson dove into the corner off Turn 1, touched the pavement line, and shot back up. As he did so, he caught Ross Chastain and spun him. He barely missed Hamlin, who was the race leader at the time. Another overtime restart gave similar nerves to the audience. Larson and Hamlin were lined up next to each other, ready for what would’ve been an edgy showdown.
The No. 5 and the No. 11 seem to keep finding each other week after week pic.twitter.com/hFIsWZclDT
— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) July 1, 2024
However, things never picked off as Larson’s Camaro ran out of fuel and sputtered to a stop. Both drivers expressed their opinions of a potential rivalry between them in the aftermath. Neither refused to acknowledge that they disliked the other and that they were just two guys racing each other hard. However, Hamlin appears to have had a change of heart going back home.
Denny Hamlin isn’t opposed to a “rivalry” with Kyle Larson
Speaking to the press before the Nashville race and on a previous episode of Actions Detrimental, Hamlin refused to use the word “rivalry” to reflect the relationship that he had with Larson on the track. But on the podcast’s most recent episode, he had a change in his heart. He told his co-host and guest, Tyler Reddick, that he didn’t care what they called it.
He said, “I’m in this for the long haul. I’m fine with the way we are racing and it’s going to keep going. It’s going to keep raised.” Asked if this meant he had a rivalry with Larson, he replied, “Sure, if you want to call it that.”
