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Kevin Harvick reacts to Chris Buescher crew chief Scott Graves calling out Denny Hamlin for Talladega wreck

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones04/30/25brianjones_93
Chris Buescher (3)
Jason Allen-Imagn Images

Kevin Harvick shared his thoughts on Chris Buescher‘s crew chief, Scott Graves, calling out Denny Hamlin for the wreck at Talladega this past weekend. On Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour, Harvick talked about the social media post Graves made that was directed at Hamlin.

“We saw [Busecher’s] crew chief go after Denny Hamlin after the race on Twitter,” Kevin Harvick said. “Had a nice little post that I’m sure we can put up to go along with everything that happened with the wreck. But he was none too pleased with Denny Hamlin and the results of the 20 [Christopher Bell] crashing him and sending the 17 [Buescher] to the wall.”

During the first stage of the Talladega race, Hamlin was involved in a wreck with Bell and Buescher. After the race, Graves went to social media to call out Hamlin for wrecking Buescher and ending the team’s day early. “This team works so hard every week, had our driver in position for the end of stage 1, and the guys that would consider themselves some of the best drivers in the world can’t even get through a restart,” Graves wrote. “I see why you have an insurance sponsor [Denny Hamlin], can I file a claim?”

Denny Hamlin talks about the wreck with Chris Buescher and Christopher Bell

On Denny Hamlin’s Actions Detrimental podcast, he took responsibility for the wreck but didn’t know how it happened. “Fu*king racing, I don’t know,” Hamlin said. “We were running 177 mph is what it said. So, we’re not even up to speed. I have forever when I’m the fourth car in line pushing or inside, I always push the car all the way until Turn 3 after a restart and I have done that forever and it’s never been a problem. It just spun out the 20 [Bell].”

Hamlin then said he was push drafting his teammate Bell and had yet to get fully up to speed. “C Bell should have been going slow enough, and we should have been going slow enough where he was able to take a slight push all the way around the track. When he went around, it wasn’t like — I can feel into the back of someone like how hard I’m into their bumper and I felt like I was barely there. When I like to bump draft, I don’t bump draft. I like push draft. I always slow down, get to their back bumper, and then shove them forward. Never really like to hit them and knock them forward. So, I got on his bumper, laid on it and just stayed on that push all the way around and then next thing you know, I turned his ass right into the infield. It’s on me.”

On3’s Nick Geddes contributed to this story.