Rivalries emerge when you run toward the head of the field, when every move counts. The two drivers’ animosity has been a major subject in NASCAR circles this week, following incidents in New Hampshire and Nashville in successive weeks. The 2021 champion addressed the issue during a SiriusXM NASCAR Radio appearance on July 4.
“I think Nashville was really the first time I got to — I feel like in my mind — show that I’m over it or like over the way that I’ve been raced,” Larson said, referring to a late-stage 2 incident in which he slid up the track and took Hamlin with him up toward the wall. “Now, I believe I’m ready to go on. Like, I have no problems at this moment. I’d like some respect on the track and a little more room than I’ve been given.
“And yes, I believe that if we can accomplish that, we will be able to resume racing competitively and competing fairly for victories, as I believe we are the two best teams in the sport right now. So we’ll be competing for a lot more wins together throughout the races and so on. So I used to adore racing. It’s just that we’ve had a few run-ins, but as I previously stated, I’m ready to move on and resume our fun racing. Nashville is what it is, and I’m simply ready to move on.”
Denny Hamlin officially acknowledges the Kyle Larson rivalry.
Denny Hamlin refused to confess to having a rivalry with Larson on his “Actions Detrimental” podcast following the June 23 New Hampshire race, in which the HMS vehicle was the target of the No. 11 pilot’s aggressive behaviour. A week later, during the June 30 Nashville race, the three-time Daytona 500 winner expressed a different opinion.
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“This is now three instances in a row, so I feel like, okay, I need to respond,” Hamlin told show co-host Jared Allen and guest Tyler Reddick while discussing what happened with Larson in Nashville. “So, I’m in it for the long haul. I’m satisfied with the way we’re racing, and it will continue to improve.”
“So, is it a rivalry?” Allen asked the driver.
“Sure, if you want to call it that,” Hamlin replied.
“Hey, he’s finally calling it one,” Reddick remarked. “Last week he wouldn’t do it.”
“I just said, fine, I don’t care what you want to call it,” the 23XI Racing co-owner responded.
Will Larson remain aggressive with Hamlin in the future?
Looking back over the last few years, since the introduction of the Gen 7 car in 2022, there’s no denying Hamlin has become quite adept at intermediate tracks, allowing his car to wash up the track into the car on the outside, forcing the driver to choose between being squeezed into the wall or lifting.
Larson experienced this at Pocono last year. It occurred again in New Hampshire in June. In Nashville, the HMS driver turned the tables. And, based on the 2021 champion’s comments, his forceful move sent a message that he’d had enough. He intends to gain his friend and other competitor’s esteem and, as a result, greater space on the track.
What if he doesn’t get it? We might see another confrontation involving the Nos. 5 and 11 cars in Chicago in the coming weeks.
NASCAR fans are fine with it since they have been waiting for the next big rivalry, and this one may just fill the bill.
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