Let Denny Hamlin call it, NASCAR isn't as good as it used to be. Part of it is the corporate culture in play and the various other factors that affects the sport. It's bigger than just the racing. However, he also takes exception with the actual product itself too. After William Byron won the Daytona 500 and Denny himself got caught up in a wreck in the last lap, he's finally had enough.
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Recently, Hamlin spoke on his Actions Detrimental podcast after the Daytona 500. As much as he might sound like a sore loser after losing out on such a major race, he does bring up some valid points in the process. Ultimately, he understands why drivers might call it quits on the sport they love. "Now I know why drivers retire. I just, I have that feeling. I'm tired of this sh*t...and there's just a big picture to this," Denny says.
"I worked so hard to work on my craft at all types of racetracks, and I spent so many years growing up just trying to get better," Hamlin continues, lamenting. "But times have changed. And I find myself in this position where it's like, are we now going to start viewing the Daytona 500 winners like we question our champions?"
Denny Hamlin Voices His Frustrations With The Current State of NASCAR
Additionally, Hamlin feels like the great sport he fell in love with has changed in favor of pure showmanship. It's all a matter of luck now versus the actual craft of racing. "It's just matter of wrecks at superspeedways. And I feel like the Daytona 500 is a microcosm of just the sport in general when it comes to how we crown our champion now as well. And this started with the competition group a decade ago when we started cutting horsepower, because we wanted to look good on TV. We want you to think they can pass, but not that they can actually pass," Hamlin stresses. "The entertainment of it has far overtaken the sport of it. And I don't know how we reverse things."
"I'm losing my love of the sport of it, because I feel like it's going by the wayside for the sake of entertainment," Denny continues. "That art is gone now... We gotta get this thing back."
