Over the years in NASCAR, we have seen drivers from across disciplines grace the field once in a while. Although, the last time we had a regular competitor from Formula 1 was Juan Pablo Montoya. It is often not so frequent that we see them compete in the sport.

However, last weekend’s race at the Circuit of The Americas saw the participation of drivers like F1 world champions Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button. We also had Jordan Taylor, a WeatherTech SportsCar Champion replacing Chase Elliott.

After the conclusion of the race, some of these drivers had spoken about the problems that they faced during the race. But several people had shut them down, criticizing the cross-discipline driver’s take on the sport. Later on, Joe Gibbs Racing driver and team owner for 23XI Racing, Denny Hamlin slammed the “bias” portrayed by a media judgment on shocking revelations from non-NASCAR drivers.

What did Denny Hamlin say about driver’s opinions being invalidated

The conversation began after Hamlin agreed to journalist Bozi Tatarevic’s tweet, which said, “Telling talented racers from other disciplines to just be quiet and take the hits is surely a great approach to get more of them to come and try stock car racing.“

Hamlin retweeted, “Agree. Facts are you should not trust the bias judgment of some media members. Not every caller is wrong. Not every driver who questions how we can be better is wrong. It’s like a 24-hour defense line.“

He further added, “3 guys we put on a pedestal before the race as some of the best and most talented drivers ALL came out of the event saying it was ridiculous. Now all the sudden we wanna dismiss it? -Yep, nothing to see here, it’s what we do.“

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Ahead of the race weekend, the arrival of Raikkonen, Button, and Taylor had been the center of attraction. The entry from former champions across disciplines brought in a ray of hope. As Hamlin said, they were all put on a “pedestal.”

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Fans agree with Denny Hamlin’s comments

Following the conclusion of the race, Raikkonen was interviewed by the media. During the interaction, the former F1 world champion mentioned that the race was filled with “a bit of mess and luck involved” for him. Most of the talk was about the final few cautions that pushed the race into overtime.

However, several parties had chosen to defend the sport than pay attention to the drivers from another discipline. Soon after Hamlin’s comments, several fans also argued and supported the JGR driver’s comments about putting these drivers on a pedestal and then backing out when they have opinions.

WATCH THIS STORY: Denny Hamlin exposes the malicious Kyle Larson incident after his NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace had run through Larson earlier in the day. 

It is understandable for drivers who have next to no experience in NASCAR. Especially for them to find the aggressive contact-based sport of NASCAR to be a bit different from what they are used to. As Denny said, putting them on a pedestal and then backing out when they criticize the problems is definitely not the correct thing to do.