Last week, when Denny Hamlin refuted allegations that he sabotaged an RCR driver to aid his teammate, stating that witnessing his teammates’ victories is painful because it sets a high standard for comparison, it sparked speculation about potential envy within the team. The topic took center stage following the weekend’s race at Phoenix, where Christopher Bell narrowly won over Hamlin, marking his third victory of the season.
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When questioned about possible jealousy, Hamlin elaborated on the aspects that truly bother him. In the most recent episode of his ‘Actions Detrimental’ podcast, Hamlin expressed,
“I felt very fortunate to have a chance there at the end but I just feel like I don’t know it it’s tougher when we run like crap and your teammate runs really well. That’s where you got to like, ‘Okay what what’s going on?’ ‘How is the approach so different that our results are so different?’ That’s where it becomes frustrating, not when you you know get beat by 300s of a second.”
So, as per Hamlin, his frustration stems not from being narrowly outperformed but rather from the stark disparities in performance under similar conditions. Or, probably, he finds it particularly vexing when his car lacks speed, struggles with handling, or even when his pit crew falters. His ultimate goal is to vie for victory as efficiently as his teammate.
Yet, Hamlin’s immediate reaction over the radio after narrowly losing to Bell painted a somewhat different picture. Despite racing hard but fairly, Hamlin momentarily lost his composure.
As his crew chief and spotter lauded him for his respectable second-place finish, Hamlin couldn’t contain his frustration, exclaiming, “God Damn it! F*ck!”
The outburst may have been due to the acute disappointment and brief tide of frustration following such a tightly contested race.
What did Hamlin say after last week’s Bell’s win at COTA?
The #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driver found himself mired in a controversy after being accused of deliberately colliding with Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon to trigger a caution in the closing laps at COTA, ostensibly to benefit his teammate Bell’s race strategy against the RCR #8 driver, Kyle Busch.
Hamlin refuted these claims, asserting his competitive drive on his podcast. He admitted that watching his teammates succeed is a double-edged sword, as it puts him under the microscope, likening it to being stopped by a police officer with a flashlight glaring into his car.
During the race, on lap 78, while vying for the 20th position, Hamlin’s Toyota’s front tires abruptly locked up, resulting in a collision with the right side of Dillon’s #3 Chevy that sent Dillon skidding into the gravel, prompting a caution. Television footage showed a plume of dust erupting from Hamlin’s car just before it seemingly lost braking power, leading to the crash.
But the caution proved climactic, altering the race’s entire complexion. It enabled Bell to adopt a strategic tire change to fresher rubber, a decision that helped him overtake Busch — who had dominated 43 laps — just five laps before the finish.
