A few days ago, Denny Hamlin watered down an accusation. Amid the NASCAR lawsuit, the sanctioning body claimed that 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are trying “to destroy” the sport. This was with reference to the two teams suing NASCAR for its ‘monopolistic practices’ in the charter system. And Hamlin responded that NASCAR itself had “threatened the system.”

Now, with alarm bells ringing across the NASCAR garage, the sports authorities are worried. Rampant measures to reach a common ground are in place. And Denny Hamlin is scoffing at the officials’ rapid change in stance.

Denny Hamlin drops an unfiltered opinion

Well, the veteran driver is known for his bold narratives. From proudly claiming to “beat your favorite driver” to claiming allegiance to Joe Gibbs Racing, Denny Hamlin is not afraid to let out his opinions. And he is especially bold in the NASCAR lawsuit. In response to the overarching demand from nine Cup Series team owners to resolve the lawsuit, NASCAR folded. From bigshot owners like Rick Hendrick to legendary icons like Richard Childress, dignitaries are scared. They think that their charters, which have gained $1.5 billion in equity value since 2016, would fizzle out if the lawsuit goes to trial on December 1.

So, NASCAR recently proposed a settlement of the legal dispute. Journalists Adam Stern and Bob Pockrass indicated that both the sport and Michael Jordan’s faction are on the same page. Denny Hamlin, however, indicated something else entirely. The 23XI Racing co-owner seemed genuinely surprised by this sudden move to resolve things. Replying to Adam Stern’s post, Hamlin wrote a 3-word bold message: “Lol!! Hold my 🍺.”

Evidently, the 180-degree shift in tone on NASCAR’s part surprised Denny Hamlin. And the latter is determined not to allow any kind of upheaval in the sport to affect his Cup Series team. “I think the morale is good,” Hamlin said about 23XI. “We’ve had discussions with our employees. They know where they stand in the short term and the long term with the company, no matter the outcome.” 

Even Bubba Wallace, who was ferociously contending for a championship until his elimination in Charlotte, was not bothered. The No. 23 Toyota driver said about the lawsuit proceedings, “I focus on the things that I can control and let everything else sit in the background. Didn’t even know anything went on last night, so that just shows you, I guess, how out of tune I am, but focused, for me, on the more important things.”

With the NASCAR lawsuit reaching a possible climax, let’s see how things turn out. While Denny Hamlin issued his unfiltered take on the legal drama, he also offered an opinion on an incident in Sunday’s race.

Defending his rival’s free will

Two weeks ago, Denny Hamlin slipped into controversy in New Hampshire. Ty Gibbs, his JGR teammate, did not allow him room to slip away, and Hamlin responded by spinning him out. He defended his stance, showing that his playoff situation was more serious. In last Sunday’s race at the Charlotte Roval, Daniel Suarez had a chance to help out his teammate, Ross Chastain. At the end of stage 2, he could have had a chance to pass Joey Logano, whom Chastain was fighting for the last Round of 8 playoff berth. Yet Suarez never made that pass, and eventually Chastain was eliminated.

According to Denny Hamlin, Daniel Suarez did nothing wrong – despite his position being similar to that of Ty Gibbs in New Hampshire. Suarez has only four races left at Trackhouse Racing, following which Connor Zilisch will replace him in the No. 99 Chevrolet. So Hamlin defended Suarez: “I’m sure his Trackhouse team would have loved for him to go get that spot and take it from Joey, but… I don’t know that it was deliberate. If anything was deliberate, Daniel was just trying to do the best he could to give himself the best finish of the day, which this spot is completely irrelevant to me. I care nothing about the points, I wasn’t part of the playoffs anyway, why do I care? I’ve got three, four more races for this team.”

Clearly, Denny Hamlin is asking Daniel Suarez to be bold as well in the last few races of the season. Meanwhile, the NASCAR lawsuit is occupying Hamlin off the track – let’s wait and see what unfolds next.