A war of words has broken out between drivers Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin.
During a recent NASCAR race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, playoff contenders Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin engaged in an intense battle for the lead, which saw them trading positions multiple times, ultimately costing them both. Their close competition sparked some fiery post-race comments from both drivers.
Blaney criticized Hamlin’s moves, describing him as a “hack” and expressing his frustration about Hamlin’s attempted slides during the race. Hamlin downplayed the accusations, defending himself by explaining the intricate nuances of their racing situation. He emphasized that both were trying to secure their positions and neither wanted to concede.
Hamlin pointed out that their aggressive and close racing allowed another racer, Bell, to overtake them both and clinch the win.
“No it was not,” said Hamlin after hearing Blaney’s accusation. “By the way, for the final four of a championship battle. It’s just interesting. Depending on who’s involved, like, I don’t understand.”
“Needless to say, I took the inside, I didn’t get clear of Blaney and we went through 1 and 2 really tight,” Hamlin continued, explaining the physics of their battle for the lead. “He was down the race track and I was on the bottom. He’s trying to hold me down and keep me from clearing. We’re doing nothing but stalling each other out — through the corner, down the straight, all we’re doing is dragging our cars.
“I’m inching ahead and he’s inching ahead. All that’s doing is dumping air on both of our spoilers and we’re going absolutely nowhere.”
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Hamlin’s narrative revolved around the concept of racing dynamics, particularly the aerodynamic effects when two cars race closely side-by-side. He mentioned that both he and Blaney tried to outdrive each other, leading to them slowing down in relation to the other racers. Hamlin also highlighted that there was no physical contact between their cars, although they raced closely.
Interestingly, Hamlin referenced a previous incident where he was involved with Kyle Larson, asserting once again that there was no contact during that race either.
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