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Denny Hamlin calls out NASCAR for unclear rules at Charlotte Roval

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones10/15/24brianjones_93
Denny Hamlin (25)
Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Denny Hamlin had an issue with one NASCAR rule ahead of the Roval race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. On the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin talked about how he was trying to clarify a rule about all four tires being on the non-track side of the red and white rumble strips while turning at the track.

Hamlin said that he asked NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran if the left-side tires could be on the red and white or can they be on the asphalt. “When we were all riding in those horse trailers, I think they had 13 of us on each trailer, or 12 on each trailer, I had at least six or seven asked me, ‘Hey, did they clarify what the rule was?’ So we did not know,” Hamlin said.

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Hamlin added NASCAR didn’t talk about the rule during the driver’s meeting and nobody asked about it. “We were confused. There were a lot of drivers confused because it self-policed itself because you were going over this ramp. It wasn’t advantageous to jump over it,” Hamlin stated.

Denny Hamlin reacts to advancing to playoffs after Roval race

Despite the confusion, Hamlin had a strong showing at the Roval as he finished 14th. The finish was good enough for Hamlin to advance to the Round of 8 of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. After the race, Hamlin talked about getting one step closer to winning a championship.

“It’s such a tough spot to be in kind of up like we were because the only thing that really can hurt you is a really detrimental day so you can’t be as aggressive as you really want to but you can’t lose a bunch of track position either,” Hamlin said. “Great vibe, great job by this Sports Clips Haircuts Toyota team. Chris Gabehart and the team just did an awesome job of keeping us in it. Luckily we were able to come away with a top-15 there.”

The seven drivers who are joining Hamlin in the next round of the playoffs are Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott and Joey Logano. Hamlin has some work to do to reach the Championship 4 race as he’s currently sixth place in the standings.