“He’s been running his mouth lately, so he might get run into again. He’s been telling me that I’m washed up and I can’t drive anymore…He can bash me all he wants. I can certainly make his life hell,” Kyle Busch said of Denny Hamlin. That fiery warning from Busch instantly turned heads across the garage, adding fuel to an already heated back-and-forth with Hamlin. But while the drama grabbed attention, not everyone is buying into Busch’s stance. Now, insiders are stepping in. And no, not to escalate the feud, but to question whether Busch is in any position to be making threats at all.

Insiders call out Kyle Busch’s position

“He can’t get on Denny because he’s saying. He can’t get on anybody. He’s the one that needs to do the work, right? With his team and I said it last week, I’ma say it this week, he has to be the leader.” Tommy Baldwin on the Door Bumper Clear podcast didn’t hold back.

That blunt evaluation cuts right through the clamor surrounding Kyle Busch’s recent remarks on Denny Hamlin. Although Busch’s aggressive nature has always been a part of who he is, insiders are now wondering if his current state supports the mindset.

The figures present a challenging image. Since his previous victory at World Wide Technology Raceway in June 2023, Busch has been without a win for more than 100 races as of April 2026. As he enters his fourth season with Richard Childress Racing, the outcomes fall short of what was anticipated. Kyle Busch has been fighting merely to remain relevant in the field rather than competing for victories.

His current standing, 27th in points, only adds to the concern. His average finish over the last six races is 25.0, which puts him in 31st place among drivers. Hamlin, on the other hand, has been performing at an entirely different level, placing second with an average finish of 5.3. During this period, even drivers who are dealing with their own difficulties, like Joey Logano, have performed better than Kyle Busch.

What makes the situation more glaring is the broader trend. For the first time since his early years in the sport, Kyle Busch missed consecutive postseason games in 2024 and 2025. That’s a significant shift for a driver of his caliber, not simply a slump. And that’s where the criticism lands hardest.

The issue, as Baldwin suggests, isn’t what Hamlin said. It’s whether Kyle Busch is focusing on the right battle. Because in a results-driven sport like NASCAR, talk only carries weight when performance backs it up.

From ‘public enemy’ to fan favorite

“I’m the third-oldest statesman on the tour right now, but when I was with M&M’s and Toyota and driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, I was public enemy number one. That was just sort of my persona. And then I moved over to Richard Childress Racing. I joined Team Chevy, and instantly there was kind of a switch, like a little bit of a flip of fans, of haters, that were like, ‘I’ll pull for Kyle now, he’s in a Chevy.’”