- Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin’s feud has caught the attention of veteran drivers.
- Dale Jr. believes there may be a gap in understanding.
- Kyle Petty offers a blunt take, while Kenny Wallace relishes the drama.
Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin’s feud has kept the pot on the boil with every other podcast episode here and there. Although from his side, Hamlin has waved the white flag, Busch appears to have taken deep offence to Hamlin’s comments about his slump and career.
Now, even veterans, including Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Petty, and Kenny Wallace, have waded in, laying their cards on the table on who they are siding with.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. tries to pacify the situation
Junior reckons something got lost in translation in the back-and-forth between Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch. On his podcast episode, Dale Jr. said he believes Busch did not take in the full argument Hamlin was trying to make.
“I’ll bet you $100,000 his ass ain’t watched the 13 minutes of it. If anything, he probably got a text from somebody. Someone said, ‘Man, this guy’s talking shit about you,’” Dale Jr. stated of Busch’s reaction to Hamlin’s comments.
In the meantime, Dale Jr. also noted that it is hard to watch Busch struggle right now, especially with a new crew chief who most recently won races and a championship at JR Motorsports with Justin Allgaier in Jim Pohlman.
Junior asserted, “Kyle keeps having problems every week. I think they would probably run just as good as Austin Dillon if they weren’t having the issues.”
However, just like Hamlin, Dale Jr. also tipped his hat to Busch’s résumé, saying that Kyle is a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Dude is still a badass race car driver. He’s just not having a good time right now.
Kyle Petty criticizes Kyle Busch’s reaction to Hamlin’s comments
While several veterans and drivers hinted that Hamlin’s comments were more matter-of-fact than malicious, Kyle Petty did not pull any punches. In his view, Hamlin stayed well within bounds and simply called a spade a spade.
For Petty, the real issue lies in Busch choosing to make a mountain out of a molehill while his slump continues.
Petty said, “I don’t think Denny bashed him. I thought Denny was fair in his assessment. I think Kyle Busch’s skin is a little bit thin right now, rightfully so, because he is not doing anything on the racetrack. He is doing nothing on the racetrack. If you can’t beat your teammate, keep your mouth shut!”
Kenny Wallace is enjoying the whole drama
The two-time Cup Series champion, Kyle Busch, took note of Hamlin’s comments, particularly from the Actions Detrimental podcast, where Hamlin questioned whether this marks the end of the road for Busch as a contender at the top level.
He also said Busch must consistently outrun teammate Austin Dillon to make the case for a championship-caliber ride next year once his deal with Richard Childress Racing runs out. At the same time, Hamlin called Busch one of the greatest of all time and said he could not be compared to his former teammate in terms of talent.
Busch fired back over the weekend at Kansas, saying he was bashed and suggesting they should swap cars before Hamlin speaks again. He also warned he could make Hamlin’s life hell on the race track.
After laying out this whole scene in a recent clip on his X handle, Wallace said, “In my day, Darrell Walter would run that mouth. Rusty Wallace would run that mouth. So in my day, everybody run that mouth. Everybody did. That’s what made NASCAR great back in the day.”
“We all like to listen to what people have to say, especially somebody that’s won 60-something cup races. I mean, Denny Hamlin’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer, just like Kyle Busch is. And here’s what I have to say about that dust-up. More, please. It was awesome. We need more of it. Keep talking s***, you guys,” he continued.
Whether Busch carries this grudge onto the track remains to be seen, but for now, it is clear the remarks have struck a nerve.
