Riley Herbst’s actions during the Daytona 500 prove that you can’t appease everyone. In the final lap, while he did a great job bumping his teammate and winner Tyler Reddick, one wrong move sent him crashing into Brad Keselowski, leading to a huge pileup just yards away from the checkered flag. But as he faces criticism from all sides, his team boss has his back.

Denny Hamlin backs up Riley Herbst against Brad Keselowski

Though Denny Hamlin crashed late in the race, he is still happy as a team owner for 23XI Racing’s victory. Their teamwork was on full display, but the final altercation that Herbst had with Brad Keselowski was a miscalculation on his part. Herbst simply wanted to block Keselowski and not be a “stupid” driver like Keselowski claimed he was. Denny Hamlin knows that, and in his post-race interview, Hamlin tried to negate Keselowski’s slander.

“Yes, because I can tell you at his age and after the year he had, it would be very, very hard for me, as selfish as I am, when he had that run to not just take it. But he specifically followed the 45, pushed the 45 when he needed to when he could have then pulled beside the 45, and then given himself a legit shot. I definitely like Riley, especially as a person. He’s just a great kid, very humble, and a very hard worker. We expect more from him, and today was a great sign that hopefully he’s turned the corner.”

Denny Hamlin’s words show how much confidence he has in his driver. It would be easy for him to shake it off and label Riley Herbst’s actions as a mistake. But instead of letting him take the blame, Hamlin is shouldering the responsibility.

Not only does he understand that Herbst was equally good at trying to win the race, but also a very humble team player. Putting aside his less-than-ideal rookie season is easy if he keeps bringing in performances like these. All that is left now is for Riley Herbst to get his act together and race well in the upcoming weekend.

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Denny Hamlin is also supportive of the progress he has shown over the off-season. He was allowed a second chance at turning around his Cup Series in 2026, and Hamlin believes in his ability to do so. While talking about his expectations from Riley Herbst and his personal conversations with the driver, Hamlin said:

“He’s always been very self-reflective. I never question if he doesn’t run well; the first thing he does is figure it out. He asks what he could do better, right? It’s not that I need to point out this is not right, that’s not right. He’s always very aware and self-reflects, which is what someone that’s going to get better at their craft is if that’s their mindset. So, I’ve never seen anything in his work ethic that has made me question his ability to get better. And again, time will tell, and we’ll see this season where that 35-team is.”

Hamlin’s support and appreciation might just be the pat on his back Herbst needs after crashing out at Daytona. It is going to be difficult for him, especially considering the slander he is receiving. But nevertheless, at least he does not need to worry about losing his seat out of nowhere.

But what does his team owner feel about his own race?

Daytona 500 win soothes Denny Hamlin’s own regrets

At one point, even Denny Hamlin was looking like a strong contender to win the race. But unfortunately for him, he was present in the wrong place at the wrong time. While trying to make his move on Allgaier and overtake him, Hamlin was taken out by Allgaier. Denny Hamlin tried to close the gap and squeeze past Justin Allgaier; however, he was ultimately blocked and spun out. As soon as his car lost traction, Hamlin found himself in a multi-car wreck, which immediately took him out of contention for the victory.

Nevertheless, for Denny Hamlin, the race was not over yet. In his post-race interview, Denny Hamlin gave a hint of his team owner’s mindset that made him shift his priorities and strategize accordingly.

“I mean, certainly, I know the odds of winning here are very, very small, but I also know that this is the most chances I’ve had with five cars—myself and these four 23XI cars. And just after I got crashed for the last time at the end, I was like, ‘All I’m looking at is the scoreboard how many horses I still got left in the race.’

“To see that we had quite a few cars up there for that last restart was fantastic, and I knew we had a great shot, and when they told me at the end, I had no idea how it happened. But watching it back, it just was great to see Tyler making all the right moves and Riley just being a great teammate there at the end, giving him the pushes when he needed it. But it’s very gratifying. I think it’s certainly more gratifying than other wins that I’ve had.”

Finally, Hamlin made the admission about his own race, and for now, it seems like the brutal end to his own hopes of winning Daytona has not affected him badly.

“Brickyard was close, but the 500 is just a little different as an owner. So it feels great. It certainly soothes the sting of our day on the 11 car.”

At the end of the day, the Daytona 500 brought a bittersweet end to Denny Hamlin as a racer and team owner. What remains next for him and his team is to lock in and play by the rules of the Chase format.