Most eyes were on the front row at Watkins Glen. It was an area dominated by Shane van Gisbergen as the Kiwi stormed to another jaw-dropping victory. However, as soon as fans deflected their eyes to the back of the field, they saw a chaotic mess. From Kyle Larson facing early-race brake issues to Chase Elliott’s spotter issuing wrong instructions, problems were aplenty. Then a big drama unfolded as Kyle Busch lost his temper at a rival, Ross Chastain – but Denny Hamlin chose a side.

Ross Chastain has been trying to get back to the top for some time now. After his Coca-Cola 600 victory, Chastain’s last top ten came in June in Michigan. Hence, his drive to perform well at Watkins Glen, the third-last race before the playoffs, was strong – and Denny Hamlin approves of it.

Denny Hamlin excuses Hail Melon’s moves

In terms of rowdy history, both Ross Chastain and Kyle Busch rank high. Two-time Cup Series champion Busch has an older history, as he has been too busy tending to a long 81-race winless streak for the past two years. Chastain, on the other hand, is still a rabble-rouser – and got up to no good at Watkins Glen. Busch, in a passionate drive to win, was running fifth on lap 36. But the ensuing pit stop had a long delay of 14 seconds, costing him dearly. Then, on lap 45, the final nail in the coffin was contact from behind on Turn 7 that toppled him from a battle for 12th place. As it turned out, Chastain nudged his No. 1 Chevrolet into Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota, and the latter went into Busch’s No. 8.

From that point on, Kyle Busch’s fate was sealed as he finished in 22nd place. He hurled a “d——-“ expletive at Ross Chastain over the radio. However, Denny Hamlin chose to side with Chastain in this fiasco. He said in a recent ‘Actions Detrimental’ episode: “I don’t think it was Ross’s fault. I saw it, yes, he dived in there late. But I got up the racetrack and I got into Kyle. Kyle got into me the corner before. I was racing two-by-two with someone. I think he came from way back and just jammed it in there, and just made a ton of contact, bouncing me up into the 45.” 

At the same time, however, Denny Hamlin did not absolve Ross Chastain of wrongdoing entirely. The melon farmer’s tendency to occupy the maximum space – remember the 2023 Martinsville ‘Wall Ride’? – reflected in the Watkins Glen race. Hamlin echoed Kyle Busch’s complaints a bit, “I went into that corner and I’m like, I’m not gonna cut him any break, right? And then I see the 1, he dives in there. Then I leave room for the 1; he’s not really leaving me a whole lot of room. At that point, I’m like, I’m not gonna just let you run over me…and now I’m gonna lift for you also?”

At the end, Hamlin issued a mixed verdict: “I don’t know, it wasn’t Ross’s fault. It was inadvertent contact, but I wasn’t willing to give any more room at that point.” Denny Hamlin was fairly neutral while dissecting the on-track incidents of Watkins Glen. But the same cannot be said about one off-track incident.

Defending his moves as well

What unfolded between Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, and Kyle Busch this year was not so serious. None of them wrecked out, but merely lost pace. However, the 2024 race at Watkins Glen was a different story for Denny Hamlin. At first, contact with Kyle Busch caused heavy damage to his car. He had tow-link issues on the left rear after hitting the outside wall. Then, as the field headed into the right-hand Turn 2 three-wide, Hamlin’s No. 11 spun on the outside after contact with Keselowski. This second incident sparked a debate in the broadcast booth during the 2025 Watkins Glen. NBC Sports analysts Steve Letarte and Jeff Burton questioned Hamlin’s role in the crash that risked his spot in the playoffs.

However, the JGR veteran responded vehemently, defending last year’s incident. He said, “I’ve got to defend myself a little bit, with Letarte and others, and Burton, because they said, you know, I stayed three-wide there.” Denny Hamlin continued, “I was up there because I was letting the No. 21 go into the corner, like you should — you don’t want to run side-by-side into the esses. Well, then the No. 6 and the No. 5 jam it in there on me late, and yeah, I’m in three-wide top, but I can’t hit the brakes enough to let both of them go. I mean, at this point, as a driver, when you’re three-wide, I know this isn’t an official rule, but the code is whoever’s ahead usually kind of has the right-of-way.”

Evidently, Denny Hamlin is trying to clear up the messes of both 2024 and 2025. Hopefully, the JGR veteran can learn a great deal from this and look forward to a title run this season.