The battle was intense. William Byron and Denny Hamlin were front-runners at the Coca-Cola 600 for the majority of the race. With the stakes high, both racers were engaged in a heated duel for bragging rights at the crown jewel event, leading laps and making passes by capitalizing on every opening they could find. The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran led 53 laps at ‘America’s Home for Racing’, second only to his Hendrick Motorsports rival. But when the checkered flag was waved, Hamlin ended up scoring 16th as the last car on the lead lap.

Meanwhile, Byron narrowly missed out on Victory Lane, having been overtaken by Ross Chastain with six laps to go. Bizarrely, some Hendrick Motorsports fans blamed Denny Hamlin for the No. 24 Chevy’s result, even though the veteran racer was being lapped when Chastain made the pass. So, what did Hamlin have to say about this? Well, the #11 was not having any of it.

Denny Hamlin distances himself from controversy

Denny Hamlin was racing for nothing but pride in the closing stages of the 2025 Coca-Cola 600. Despite running second during the final cycle of green-flag pit stops, the veteran racer faced some troubling news when he got back on the racetrack after discovering that he didn’t have enough fuel to reach the checkered flag. In an attempt to salvage a result, the No. 11 Toyota finally pitted again under green with 12 laps to go, a decision that resulted in him being lapped by the race leaders towards the end.

Then, with six laps to go, Denny Hamlin was occupying the bottom lane going into Turn 1 since he was already lapped. William Byron, who was leading, had a moment of hesitation, and Chastain capitalized on that opportunity by driving into the narrowest of gaps between the two racers. Responding to unfounded accusations that he somehow influenced Byron’s second-place finish, Denny Hamlin set the record straight on the Actions Detrimental podcast.

He brought up the topic by saying, “Speaking of HMS fanboys. I’m getting some mentions that I’m responsible for Byron losing? What the f— are people watching? I was behind him when he stepped on his d—.” Absolving himself of any blame, the 44-year-old couldn’t help but say, “How can people be that dumb? If you said that you’re an idiot. That is just asinine. You think I give a f— at that point?”

Hamlin was irate at this accusation of robbing Byron of a win, and proceeded to explain what went down in those final fateful laps. He added, “I was behind him. He got stuck behind the #22 [Joey Logano], got loose in three and four. The #1 [Ross Chastain] came in with a massive run because he got loose behind the #22, and I went by both of them. And by the way, I lifted into Turn 1 to let them race. If you look, I got beside the #24 [William Byron] and here comes the #1… I lifted into [Turn] one because I’m like, ‘I ain’t getting in the middle of this. I’ll pass him off of Turn 2. What are these people watching?”

Ultimately, Denny Hamlin’s hopes of finishing the race on the lead lap were fulfilled. Considering that he led the second-highest number of laps at Charlotte Motor Speedway, not even finishing inside the top 15 was a heartbreaking outcome. But what infuriated the Florida native was somehow being blamed for Byron’s second-place finish, despite making it clear that he “held my line really, really low, I didn’t side draft anyone, nothing.” Perhaps it all stems down to the rivalry between Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, which may lead some fans to this conclusion. However, Hamlin wasn’t done letting out his frustration.

The Toyota driver was on the brink of potentially winning his second Coca-Cola 600 in three years until a fueling error messed it all up for him, so he pointed out that he had absolutely no incentive to mesh with the leaders after knowing he had no shot at winning. A heated Hamlin said, “I just pitted with 10 laps to go, trying to get to the lead lap in case a caution comes. Then, maybe I stay out cause I got right side tires and I squeeze some sort of finish out of this freaking day… I was not a factor. I was the least person in the way!”

Well, the Coca-Cola 600 didn’t go Hamlin’s way in 2025, and it all came down to a pit crew who are usually on top of their game, but were not this past Sunday.

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Hamlin reflects on what went wrong in Charlotte

Denny Hamlin was looking for redemption. After a disappointing 38th-place finish in Texas, the veteran racer was eager to hit the ground running at the Coca-Cola 600. Having qualified for the crown jewel event in 20th place, the veteran knew that being patient and working his way up the track during this 400-lap marathon was the best way to be in contention, and that’s exactly what he did, finishing 7th in the first stage and second in Stages 2 and 3, just behind William Byron. But it all went wrong towards the end.

During the final cycle of green-flag pit stops, the fueler put the second can in, but it didn’t connect properly, and fuel began to spill all over the ground. Driving helplessly, Hamlin hoped for a caution that never came, forcing him to give up track position with a handful of laps remaining to stand a chance of finishing the race.

When asked if he would have a conversation with his pit crew afterwards, Denny Hamlin candidly said, “I mean, they’re the pros. I’m not a pit guy, but I tried to do everything I could for the National Debt Toyota Team. Fun battling up front. It was a heck of a battle there and would have liked to see it through, but unfortunately just didn’t get enough gas in it and had to come back in.”

It’s not the first time Hamlin has been forced to contend with pit crew errors. During his 2024 playoff run, the veteran claimed his team was “in a slump, for sure.” With no top-five finish in his last four races this year, the 44-year-old will hope to make amends when the Cup Series visits Nashville Superspeedway next week for the 2025 Cracker Barrel 400. With two wins already this season, could he secure his first career triumph at the 1.3-mile tri-oval? Let us know what you think in the comments!