NASCAR star Denny Hamlin full of praise for San Diego event at Naval Base Coronado

Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin has issued a positive verdict on NASCAR's debut event at Naval Base Coronado.

All three national NASCAR series were in action at the active U.S. Navy base over the weekend, with the Cup, O'Reilly and Truck Series races having been won by Corey Heim, Austin Hill and Layne Riggs.

The race weekend took place on the newly designed road course as part of NASCAR's celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the United States and the Navy, with it being the first-ever NASCAR race weekend to be held at an active military base.

Team Penske star Ryan Blaney is one driver who has already called for the sport to return to Naval Base Coronado once again, and Hamlin has also shared a positive review of what went down in California.

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Denny Hamlin on NASCAR event in San Diego

"Well, I mean, the event itself was fantastic," Hamlin told the media post-race, after seeing his 23XI Racing driver Corey Heim take the victory.

"I’m sure NASCAR and its team has got a checklist of things they can improve on. It seemed like to me the people I interacted with, like lots of them, it was their first race.

"Racing the racetrack, it felt like a normal NASCAR track to me. It was a little surprising the first time we hit the racetrack, but after that, once the race got going, it felt like any old road course that we’ve had.

"I thought great design, lots of passing zones, challenging in so many different ways with the surface. But when we come into this event, you want it to feel like the racing is a big part of why you’re here, but it’s not the only reason why you’re here.

"I thought they did a great job with their midway, how much activation they had. That’s the boxes we need to check. There’s many races that makes selling on a car really difficult. This was not one of ’em."

Will NASCAR return to San Diego in 2027?

At present, there is no confirmation that NASCAR will return to San Diego or the Naval Base Coronado in 2027. However, NASCAR COO Ben Kennedy confirmed over the weekend that the sport would love to.

"Last thing I’ll say is, you guys will ask about this, what does the future look like, are we coming back, are we not coming back," Kennedy told the media in a press conference on Sunday.

"What I can tell you is we feel this is a tremendously successful event. We want to be respectful that this is an active military base at the same time. This is a great partnership, a great pairing being the 250th anniversary of the United States Navy, 250th anniversary of the United States of America. Couldn’t ask for a better time than this.

"We would love to return. We’re also cognizant of the fact this is an active military base. We want to be mindful of that, as well."