The ongoing debate surrounding the Gen-7 NASCAR car intensified recently as Kyle Larson echoed Denny Hamlin’s outspoken views, putting a spotlight on concerns about race quality. As drivers and fans dissect the impact of these changes, the Denny Hamlin Gen-7 criticism takes center stage, raising new questions about the very fabric of competition in America’s premier stock car series.
Drivers’ Unease Grows over Gen-7 Parity
The introduction of the Gen-7, or Next Gen, NASCAR car aimed to bring the field closer together, but not every driver is convinced it has helped the sport overall. Denny Hamlin has been forthright in his criticism, often using his platform on Actions Detrimental to articulate what many in the garage have whispered for months. He cut to the chase, stating,
“The field is running the same speed,”
– Denny Hamlin, Driver, as he summarized the consequences he believes have followed the sport’s move to a more standardized machine.
The push for ‘forced parity’ – ensuring teams and drivers perform on more equal ground – was designed to spice up the competition and grant lesser-funded teams a better shot at victory lane. However, Hamlin and others argue this has come at a cost to race-craft, strategic depth, and the drama of overtaking, hallmarks that once defined NASCAR’s brand of racing.
Adding to the conversation, the highly versatile Kyle Larson – fresh off a championship-winning season – opted to break his silence. His remarks treaded a careful line, acknowledging positives, but keenly aware of the tradeoffs the new format has created.
Parity Brings New Winners, but Challenges the Racing Experience
Larson weighed in on the state of the series by saying,
“I think we all just had the same car now,”
– Kyle Larson, Driver. He further explained,
“Now the sport’s cool because of more winners than we ever have before, and the parity is much better. But at the same point, it’s like, it’s made the racing a little bit worse. I feel like it’s harder to pass.”
– Kyle Larson, Driver.
Data appears to back up Larson’s appraisal. In the 2025 season, NASCAR’s Cup Series saw a remarkable 14 different drivers claim victories, split among seven organizations. Such diversity in the win column hints at a thriving, unpredictable sport on the surface.
The Gen-7 car has indeed succeeded in narrowing the gap between the big teams and their competitors, emphasizing driver ability and race execution over engineering advantage. But beneath this veneer of equality, some fundamental elements of the racing product have suffered. More than ever, track position – where a driver sits on the circuit – matters as much as outright speed, and the importance of “clean air” has soared. Especially on short tracks, overtaking has become a rare commodity. Larson’s dominant display at Bristol – leading 411 of 500 laps – served as a showcase for the conundrum: a flawless performance in a race that divided fan opinion about its entertainment value.
Denny Hamlin returned to the theme at Richmond, dissecting how little margin exists for a faster car to fight forward, saying,
“The field is just now running the same speed, and at a track where you have to have three to three and a half tenths of speed to overtake the car in front of you, that means that the first-place fastest car is going to struggle to pass the 25th if he just gets put behind him.”
– Denny Hamlin, Driver.
This is the uneasy trade NASCAR grapples with: a more level playing field may create new stars and winners, but can also rob the sport of the comebacks, bold passes, and slugfests that captured its audience for decades.
Hendrick Motorsports Finds a Way in a Tougher Landscape
Despite the shakeup, a handful of powerhouse organizations remain at the top. As Larson puts it,
“It’s just a different race car and a different style of racing we have to adapt to it. And we still, I would say, stats would say we are still the best team, over the course of the next-gen era, we won the most races, probably the most top-5s, most top-10s, most DNFs probably too. It’s just gotten tougher for sure,”
– Kyle Larson, Driver.
The numbers reinforce Larson’s perspective. Since the Gen-7 car was introduced, Hendrick Motorsports has amassed 40 Cup Series wins, 166 top-five finishes, and 277 top-10s, outpacing every other organization in NASCAR’s top division. This remarkable run saw its peak in 2025 when Kyle Larson steered the No. 5 to the Cup championship, and the team’s consistency highlighted their adaptability in NASCAR’s new era.
But even the best teams report increased difficulty. Competition at the top has tightened, mistakes are costlier, and the gap to the rest has marginally shrunk. Team Penske remains strong, taking three consecutive championships between 2022 and 2024, led in part by Joey Logano’s dual title run and Ryan Blaney’s breakout win in 2023. Joe Gibbs Racing, featuring Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell, continued to apply relentless pressure, with Hamlin notching six wins in 2025 and Bell close behind. The heat for supremacy remains fiercest among these three organizations.
Ironically, the parity mechanism meant to spread the wealth of success has concentrated much of it amongst NASCAR’s elite. Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Team Penske wield the resources, engineering know-how, and personnel to maximize even tightly restricted cars. This was humorously underlined by Michael McDowell, now representing Spire Motorsports, who quipped about bridging the gap by “stealing their people.”
With so little room left for innovation, relentless adaptation is the key for any organization hoping to challenge these giants.
The Road Ahead for NASCAR and Its Drivers
Kyle Larson’s alignment with Denny Hamlin’s Gen-7 criticism has prompted renewed discussion within the garage and among fans about what makes for the best racing product. NASCAR now faces difficult questions: Can the sport retain its hard-earned parity without eroding the thrilling on-track battles that built its popularity? Will future adjustments restore the chance for dramatic drive-through-the-pack moments that once defined victory lane drama?
While the current era has brought unprecedented opportunity for different competitors to win races, the price has been the dampening of mechanical variety and pure racing spectacle. As the likes of Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Team Penske continue to lead by example, the pressure is on for NASCAR leadership to find adjustments that balance on-track parity with the excitement fans crave. The conversation ignited by Denny Hamlin and now joined by Kyle Larson suggests the debate, and perhaps the evolution, is far from over.
