Denny Hamlin wins Clash, fires back at booing fans: 'You know I beat your favorite driver again'
For the fourth time in his career and the first time at the LA Coliseum, Denny Hamlin has won the Busch Light Clash. That is second-most in NASCAR history, only trailing Dale Earnhardt Sr. himself.
Denny Hamlin, fresh off-shoulder surgery this offseason, wins the season-opening exhibition. Even with the move from Sunday to Saturday, Hamlin was calm, controlled, and pulled off the big win in Los Angeles.
Hamlin did it all today. He won the pole, got sent to the middle of the top-10 and then made his way to the front again. With one final restart to determine the winner, Hamlin held off Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney in order to win The Clash.
Big win to start the season for this No. 11 team.
Oh, and he still beat your favorite driver. Make sure you don’t forget.
No matter how you feel about Denny Hamlin, he is good for the sport. This is a driver who has won everything, he has all of the money and fame, and yet he is still chasing that championship. It is a point of pride for his fans, his journey for the elusive title. But also a point of mockery for haters.
When Hamlin is in Victory Lane, he doesn’t care what the fans have to say. He just cares about the win.
Denny Hamlin wins strange Busch Light Clash
Today we expected to see practice, Last Chance Qualifiers, and the Heat races. Well, we didn’t get any of that, folks. Instead, NASCAR did what many believed impossible and moved the race up to tonight. This was done to avoid the catastrophic weather that is reportedly coming to California tomorrow.
Denny Hamlin likes to win these important NASCAR events. Crown jewel races, special events like the Clash – those are what Hamlin does better than most. He has made a hell of a career off of winning these things multiple times.
Hamlin’s pole and race win are a sign of things to come. Not just for him but Toyota as a whole. The manufacturer was strong tonight on the shortest track of the season. The new Camry XSE proved to be just as good if not better than the previous TRD.
So, Hamlin has four wins in the Busch Light Clash. Is he set to add his fourth Daytona 500 this year as well? In two weeks, we will be talking about The Great American Race. That is when NASCAR will start the season in earnest.
On the heels of the NASCAR: Full Speed success, where Denny Hamlin starred for most of the series, this is great. New fans are going to see Hamlin is a real star in the sport and might be interested to watch and see if he can earn himself a championship in 2024.
The season is here NASCAR fans, let’s enjoy every minute of it before it’s gone again.