Unlike the Pocono racetrack, brimming with the exciting drama of frequent close calls, crashes, and drivers pushing the pedal to the metal, Richmond’s race was more akin to watching paint dry. Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin’s fleeting show of exhilaration was but a flash in the pan. In light of this, Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently put forward a thought-provoking antidote for Richmond’s yawn-inducing track, a tactic NASCAR has employed in arenas such as Nashville Speedway and Michigan International Speedway, amongst others.

Yet, it seems that Denny Hamlin wasn’t ready to jump on the bandwagon, sparking a spirited retort from Dale Jr. and prodding him to answer a handful of looming queries.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wants Denny Hamlin to answer his questions

Dale Earnhardt Jr., a NASCAR kingpin as esteemed as his father, if not more, is hailed for his technical acumen, eloquent commentary, insightful suggestions, and more. This time around, following the Richmond Speedway NASCAR Cup Series race, when Earnhardt Jr. pitched the use of resins on the track, a methanol-soluble fluid that naturally augments the embedding of tire rubber into the track, fostering a more vibrant and competitive race, Hamlin balked at the proposition.

As soon as Dale Jr. aired his thoughts on Twitter, he suggested, “Richmond may need some resin in the higher lanes. I’ve seen it help some other tracks.” Hamlin, the Pocono Champion, offered a veiled response: “Sounds like a band-aid for something else wrong?”

Hamlin further expanded on his skepticism in his podcast, questioning the practicality of the resin solution and drawing from the history books of NASCAR: “What would we do if you put up one lane of resin around the race track? We’re going to run in that one lane around in a train[…] We’re trying to replicate the days of the sealer, but we don’t have the same cars as what we had when the sealer was around. Cars are different now.”

Earnhardt Jr. conceded the point but returned fire, saying, “Damn it! We can’t go back and do it again. So, what do we do before we go back to Richmond? Give me those answers, right? Tell me all right.”

Junior further went on and said, “Denny, here’s the tools in the toolbox, and your car’s not different; if the car doesn’t change and the car is not better, we don’t find answers there, and we don’t find answers in a tire. If we can’t have either one of those two, what is left? What are you going to do to make the racing better?”

The ball is now in Hamlin’s court. Not to mention, Earnhardt Jr.’s recommendation has merit, as it has previously benefited NASCAR tracks and could potentially rejuvenate Richmond Speedway as well.

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Did NASCAR racers take a shine to the resin-laced tracks?

As per foxsports.com, before 2021, the 1.33-mile concrete oval of Nashville Speedway slumbered for close to a decade, resulting in significant tire wear in its inaugural test. In an attempt to ease the burden on the tires, NASCAR introduced resin, not as a traction booster but to encourage rubber acceptance on the track. The trial run in June gave the track a breath of fresh air, injecting new life into the Nashville races.

According to Empiresports Media, mirroring this scenario, in August 2021, NASCAR substituted PJ1 with resin in the corners at Michigan International Speedway, a move that still kept the drivers on their toes. The cars remained challenging to maneuver, leading to what was arguably one of the most exciting races in the Speedway’s annals.

Drivers themselves have weighed in, mostly singing praises about the resin-coated surfaces:

William Byron (Michigan International Speedway): “I think the resin has made the track more forgiving.” When I went to block the No. 11 [at Michigan] and held him off, I was up there in the resin and way too high because of the contact there and saved it—I don’t know if that would’ve happened with the PJ1.”

Kyle Busch (Nashville Superspeedway): “I don’t think that this place has changed one concrete joint since we’ve been here. It looks good; they’ve done a lot of work here, and I’m looking forward to having a good weekend.”

Ryan Blaney: “I thought the resin kind of wasn’t great, but it wasn’t bad either. You could kind of play around with it while also running the bottom or the middle. I thought it was a thumbs-up for me.”

With such rave reviews from the drivers about their experience on resin-laden tracks, it will indeed be intriguing to hear Denny Hamlin’s take on the matter.

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