Denny Hamlin faced a frustrating night at Daytona during the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday as he became entangled in chaotic incidents that severely damaged his No. 11 Toyota and derailed his race plans. The veteran driver‘s challenges began early and continued to mount, overshadowing his efforts on the track and leading to heightened frustration expressed over team radio.
The turmoil started on Lap 27 with a large 12-car crash triggered by a tight pack collision involving Bubba Wallace, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch. Hamlin’s car was one of many caught up in the wreck as the crash unfolded. On his ‘Actions Detrimental’ podcast, Hamlin openly expressed his displeasure with Wallace, a fellow 23XI Racing teammate.
“It looked like to me that Bubba just squeezed those two guys below him down,”
Hamlin said.
“You could just see that they’re there, two cars on the inside… So he ended up wrecking himself and obviously a few others.”
—Denny Hamlin, NASCAR driver
Despite damage to his car, Hamlin’s team managed to repair it quickly enough to get him back on track, briefly raising hopes that the race could still improve for him.
Escalating Struggles and Tense Moments Over the Radio
Hamlin’s troubles intensified on Lap 108 when a punctured right front tire forced him into the outside wall, inflicting further damage on his already compromised car. His frustration became audible during radio conversations with crew chief Chris Gayle, as he struggled to maintain control of the vehicle.
“I can’t turn the car! I can’t turn it!”
Hamlin exclaimed over the radio. Gayle advised him to return to the garage for a thorough inspection, but Hamlin insisted on staying on pit road to quickly change tires.
Image of: Denny Hamlin
“Just get the tire on it so I don’t go another f*****g lap down,”
he demanded.
Gayle responded firmly,
“We’ll put a tire on it, but we have to know what the f**k is wrong with it, Denny.”
Reflecting later on his podcast, Hamlin acknowledged that the initial damage from Lap 27 was the root cause of the day’s unraveling.
“Once we had damage, and you know, I thought we were going to be okay. I had some right front damage, but you know, that the steering wasn’t totally out of whack,”
he recalled.
“Once they replaced the right front toe link, it was better. It drove okay in the corners and the speed was fine. And then it just went downhill.”
“It just felt like, you know, the more we worked on it, the worse it got, and then started blowing tires and just was not a great day for us,”
Hamlin added.
Daytona’s Challenges Continue for Hamlin Ahead of Playoffs
Hamlin ultimately finished the race in 25th place, a result far below his expectations given his previous success at Daytona, where he has won three times. The difficulties at this track have become consistent during the Next Gen car era, as he has not managed to finish better than 17th in his last eight starts at Daytona.
With the NASCAR Cup Seriesplayoffs starting next weekend at Darlington, Hamlin understands that he must move past nights like these to stay on track for his first Cup championship. The setbacks at Daytona have added pressure on the veteran driver as he seeks to regain momentum and deliver stronger performances in the crucial final stages of the season.
