Michigan experienced a thrilling yet chaotic race day with 74 laps completed out of 200, surpassing the excitement of the entire Richmond Raceway event. The action-packed 74 laps featured a staggering three cautions with drivers exchanging track positions throughout. Due to persistent rain, the race has been postponed to Monday. 

Following the event, Denny Hamlin expressed his frustration on his podcast Actions Detrimental, where he shared some strong words for his JGR team.

Denny Hamlin reveals strategic dilemmas in Michigan podcast discussion

During the podcast, Denny Hamlin explained that he hasn’t been able to run at full throttle during races. He recounted the incident at Michigan where he found himself in traffic, but when he managed to gain track position, a caution was triggered. 

While running right behind the battling duo of Christopher Bell and Alex Bowman, Hamlin capitalized on their wreck which led to a caution. Despite wanting to maintain track position when the green flag returned, his crew chief, Chris Gabehart, called him in for a pit stop, and they couldn’t sustain their position up front.

“When I was running right behind Christopher Bell and Alex Bowman, they wrecked while we were battling for the lead. And then a caution came out, and Chris called me in for another pit stop. So it’s like we haven’t been able to sustain our track position up front.”

Denny emphasized his preference for prioritizing track position over pitting, even if his car was running out of gas. He expressed the desire for his crew chief to support him better during races to help them maintain track positions and open up strategic options, as that’s how it typically works in NASCAR.

Denny Hamlin Exposes Brutally Selfish Mentality of NASCAR’s Cup Drivers

“Scr*w it, if I was running out of gas, I’ll just come in whenever I run out of gas. I’m not pitting and giving up my track position, where we are trying to open up some options. Hopefully, Chris has plans to help me regain my track position by the end of the day. That’s how it works” Hamlin emphasized.

This is not the first time Denny Hamlin has voiced his dissatisfaction with his team’s actions. Another such instance was the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway. His unfiltered self made a surprising confession, pointing to his #11 FedEx Toyota, implying that it didn’t meet his expectations for the race.

Ally 400, Hamlin voices frustration over sub-par equipment

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While the Trackhouse Racing pilot, Ross Chastain clinched his first victory of the season, Denny Hamlin was relegated to a third-place finish, closely behind his teammate Martin Truex Jr. Despite leading for almost 50 laps in the final stage, Hamlin expressed his frustration with Joe Gibbs Racing’s equipment. 

Denny Hamlin’s momentary lead was cut short when Ross Chastain, took advantage of the battle between teammates, Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. Despite finishing third, Hamlin openly critiqued his team’s equipment, acknowledging that Truex had a superior car compared to him.

Venting his frustration during the post-race interview, Hamlin remarked that despite avoiding mistakes, their car lacked the necessary speed to contend for the victory. He stated, “I just think we had you know a third-place car, really the entire race I thought that #19(Truex Jr) was a little better, the #1(Chastain) obviously came on strong there at the end and so that’s all we have with our Fed Ex Toyota.”

After all that has been said, the focus now shifts to the Michigan Monday race, and fans are eagerly anticipating more action. It will be intriguing to observe how the #11 JGR team performs, beginning from the 10th position on the grid.

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