The history of NASCAR is replete with instances where drivers have engaged in a bitter altercation with one another and also with the authority. However, the recent social media spat between Joe Gibbs Racing’s veteran driver Denny Hamlin, and the CEO of Speedway Motorsports Marcus Smith was unprecedented. Which initially started as a critique of the questionable paving of Sonoma eventually turned into a personal beef between the two individuals, sending fans into an upheaval.

Although both Smith and Hamlin later tried to retract from their debate, the harm was already done. With the whole of NASCAR bearing testament to the whole exchange, the hosts of Door Bumper Clear tried to assert a different possibility behind this whole bickering and claimed it was a pre-meditated affair.

Was Richmond replaced with Sonoma?

The #11 driver has evidently been at the receiving end of criticism for his controversial restart at Richmond throughout the weekend and after. Keeping this point in mind, the hosts opined that perhaps Hamlin wanted to get the attention off of him by giving the community something even bigger to talk about.

Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, stated, “I mean, I don’t think it was but it would not surprise me if the two of them conjured this up for attention. It was all anybody talked about that night on Twitter.” To back up his co-host’s statement Brett Griffin added, “I will tell you what it did for Denny. It made people stop talking about his restart [at Richmond].”

Nonetheless, when asked who had claimed the victory in the exchange of verbal blows, Kraft further expressed, “Denny is great and I had to give it to the nod to Denny because, Marcus just had the same comeback every time. Like Denny was kind of switching up a little bit and Marcus was like ‘You are not a champion’. Denny would come back with something else, he: ‘You are not a champion’. So if you are going to fight, you got to have to figure out something new to hit with and there is probably plenty.”

However, Brad Keselowski’s spotter, TJ Majors, asserted that the whole subject of track paving is not Hamlin’s area of expertise and Marcus was right about the “uninformed part” in the debate. Nevertheless, trying to determine a clear winner, Brett Griffin delivered the final verdict. He exclaimed, “But when Denny came in with the punch and he said ‘You are going to ruin everything that your dad gave you’, that’s a knockout blow. You ain’t getting up from that one. So I got to give the W to Denny because that one took b*lls to send.”

While this is a theory that is hard to prove, when it comes to Denny Hamlin and Marcus Smith, it seems they’ve already left the bad blood in the past!

Usually Blunt Denny Hamlin’s Hesitation to ‘Throw Gas on Fire’ Forces NASCAR Fans to Take a U-Turn

Denny Hamlin’s feud with Marcus Smith reaches a new conclusion

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The 3x Daytona 500 winner was already on fire last week for his controversial jump start to out-duel his teammate Martin Truex Jr and win his second victory of the season. Adding fuel to the controversy, Hamlin commented on a post that highlighted how a chunk of asphalt had fallen off from the newly repaved track of Sonoma. Hamlin also stated that the next victim would be North Wilkesboro Speedway. 

This irked the owner of SMI, Marcus Smith, and led to personal attacks on both individuals. However, as the tempers subsided, both Smith and Hamlin admitted their mistakes. Smith took to Twitter and added the words, “Following up on my previous posts,  I take a lot of pride in the dedication and hard work our teammates put forth to make @NASCAR the very best it can be and I shouldn’t let social media conversations get personal, so I deleted those posts.”

Trying to mend the barriers, Smith also added, “@dennyhamlin is a passionate driver and team owner and I’m truly looking forward to seeing him drive for a championship this year. Our team is working hard to fix some pavement issues @racesonoma and we will get it right.   Let’s keep the positive momentum going in 2024!” 

Moreover, Denny Hamlin, as a veteran of the sport, decided to take equal responsibility for his emotional outburst. “I’ll definitely take responsibility for my part in it. It got more personal than it should have for sure,” he added on X.

“More Ls Than Ws” – Denny Hamlin Brings the Receipts on SMI’s Years of Incompetence and Failures

With no bad blood between the duo anymore, do you think the feud was staged to divert attention from seemingly controversial matters? Let us know in the comments below!