Denny Hamlin has spent much of the 2026 Cup season questioning Carson Hocevar’s approach to racing and the attention surrounding his personality. But after spending a night at Cleetus McFarland’s Freedom Factory, the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran found himself enjoying precisely the kind of entertainment-driven racing he had previously associated with the Spire Motorsports driver.
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His reaction afterward was telling, particularly when he shared a new Instagram carousel with the caption, “I’d rather be Cleetus than Jimmie.”
The occasion was the 2026 edition of the 2.4 Hours of LeMullets, where NASCAR drivers and online personalities took to the 3/8-mile Freedom Factory oval in heavily battered Ford Crown Victorias. Hamlin partnered with Alex Presley, while Hocevar teamed up with McFarland.
The event featured plenty of contact, mechanical trouble and late-race drama, with Hocevar and McFarland eventually securing their second consecutive victory.
Hamlin’s caption was particularly amusing given his recent criticism of Hocevar. On a previous episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast, he had questioned whether the young driver was more interested in becoming a popular personality like Cleetus than building a championship-winning legacy like Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon.
“I think the popularity is what gets him more excited than the actual results,” Hamlin had argued. He acknowledged Hocevar’s talent and love for racing but questioned whether the driver’s on-track aggression and off-track entertainment persona could coexist with the reputation of a dominant Cup champion.
At LeMullets, however, Hamlin got to experience the appeal of McFarland’s racing world first-hand. His own No. 11 Crown Vic took a considerable beating throughout the event, with the radiator knocked out and the right-rear tire giving way just as he approached the checkered flag. Rather than complain about the damage, Hamlin was clearly entertained by the experience.
“I hit everything but the lottery, that’s for sure. The car, knocked the radiator out, blew the right rear coming to the checkered,” he said after finishing third alongside Presley.
He also had a front-row view of the battle between Hocevar and Ty Dillon, which ultimately decided the race. Dillon was leading as the white flag came out, but Hocevar made contact with the No. 10 Crown Victoria and moved him out of the way. Dillon returned the favor into Turn 1, but ran wide approaching the backstretch chicane. Hocevar then regained the lead and held on for the win.
Hamlin was impressed by the move, even admitting that he wanted Hocevar to be more aggressive against Dillon.
“I really needed Carson to get just a little more aggressive with the 10 [Dillon]. I never usually ask for that, but that’s what I needed. But I had a front row seat to it, and it was fantastic. I thought he made an awesome move to get the No. 10 up but then gap himself to where he couldn’t get it back,” Hamlin added.
The contrast between his earlier comments and his post-race enthusiasm was not lost on Hocevar. The Spire driver responded to Hamlin’s Instagram post with a simple message: “now you get it.”
Other Instagram users also enjoyed seeing this side of Hamlin. One commenter wrote, “Denny this the coolest I’ve seen you, please come back next year”. Another added, “This is the kind of thing we diehard, old time NASCAR fans want to see more of!!! Honestly, you looked a good 5 years younger, and a heckuva lot happier, than we’ve seen lately!!”
A third user brought the conversation back to Hamlin’s Cup ambitions, writing, “I’m pulling for you for the Cup Championship in 2027. I wish I could help make it happen”.
Another reaction focused on the contrast between his usual competitive persona and the evening’s entertainment, saying, “I loved seeing how serious “professional nascar” Denny was before the race and then after he realized it was okay to be a big kid and have a ton of fun.”
One commenter also praised what McFarland had managed to bring together, writing, “Can we appreciate what Cleet is doing he brought a bunch of guys that’s been battling all year in races that’s been arguing and fighting and brought them all together to have a good time and laugh and relax in a fun non serious career race”.
The enthusiasm even extended to Hamlin’s podcast, with another user suggesting, “WE NEED AN ACTIONS DETRIMENTAL SHOW BOYSSSS!!”
Ryan Preece, another Cup regular, was also involved in the action but had to switch to a backup Crown Victoria following an earlier crash. He eventually finished sixth.
Despite the damage to their car, it was a memorable outing for Hamlin and Presley.
For Hamlin, the experience offered a different kind of competition from the pressure of a Cup championship fight. The drivers were still racing hard, but the consequences of contact were far less significant than they would be during a points-paying weekend. That freedom was part of what made the event appealing to the NASCAR regulars who attended.
It does not necessarily mean Hamlin has abandoned his earlier criticism of Hocevar’s priorities. His argument was about the balance between popularity and championship success, not whether drivers should enjoy themselves away from the Cup Series.
But after spending an evening smashing around in a Crown Victoria, he clearly understood why the Cleetus experience attracts so much attention. And Hocevar was more than happy to remind him of it.