Denny Hamlin Praises North Wilkesboro Racing After Fan Criticism: 'It Reminds Me of Bristol'

Denny Hamlin Offers Blunt Verdict on North Wilkesboro Racing After Fan Criticism: "It Reminds Me of Bristol"

Denny Hamlin reflected on NASCAR's return to North Wilkesboro Speedway for a points-paying race, praising the track's multi-groove racing capabilities. On 18 Jun, Hamlin compared the 'racy' track to Bristol and how it allows drivers to race all around the track.

Sunday's Window World 450 was a one-man show by Joey Logano, who led 323 of the 450 laps. The result was much like recent years at Bristol, where Kyle Larson led a majority of the races. In the latest episode of Actions Detrimental, Hamlin shared his thoughts on NWS, saying, "It's a racy track. It reminds me a lot of Bristol when they changed Bristol from its one groove track and then they reconcreted it, put variable banking, they ground it, next thing we know, we were racing all around Bristol from the bottom to the top."

"That's why they ended up grinding the very top of the racetrack because they wanted to get us off the top. I feel like it's sort of like this where the drivers probably like it because you got some options. There's a little bit less contact, just simply because you got so much more room to move around," he added.

What happened?

Denny Hamlin had a radio outburst during Sunday's race and called it a lengthy bout. He later explained that short tracks like NWS take much longer to run the same 400 miles than mile-and-a-half speedways. Despite his complaints, Hamlin walked away with a 51-point haul after finishing second.

Why it matters for Denny Hamlin

The result extended Hamlin's points lead over Tyler Reddick by 68. Hamlin's second-place finish was a significant improvement from his outside-the-top-10 finish in the 2025 All-Star race at NWS.

What comes next?

Joey Logano, on the other hand, jumped two spots into the Chase cutoff and landed 15th. Hamlin surprised fans with a wholesome gesture after the NWS race, shaking hands with Joey Logano and sharing the picture online. The two are famously known for their short-track rivalry, which has ended in fisticuffs on multiple occasions.

Denny Hamlin also called it a 'big turnaround' compared to last year at the 0.625-mile track. Notably, Hamlin had finished outside the top-10 in the 2025 All-Star race at NWS. Joey Logano was poised to clinch that race as well, but a promoter's caution ruined his momentum and handed the win to Christopher Bell.

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