NASCAR COTA: Denny Hamlin braces for 'lawless' Cup Series verdict

Denny Hamlin knows exactly what is coming at COTA on Sunday - lawlessness is in and ethics are out for the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series.

The Texas road course plays host to the third points-paying race of this season, and Turn 1 is likely once again to provide some of the biggest flashpoints of the season.

Drivers will accelerate up an 11%, 133-foot rise to arrive at the corner, where they then have to brake suddenly and make the tightest of hairpin left turns. Even if you drive it to perfection, you can still end up off the track…

It’s a corner where thrills and spills are commonplace, and often innocent bystanders pay a heavy price for what is happening elsewhere in the field. A wild turn which can have great benefits if you negotiate it well, but where the potential for disaster is very very real.

Current Cup Series great Hamlin knows exactly what to expect again in Sunday’s DuraMax Texas Grand Prix (3.30pm ET, FOX) - absolute chaos.

Hamlin on the wildest turn in NASCAR

When asked by PRN what are the ethics heading into Turn 1, Hamlin admitted: “I don’t know if there is any, I wish I could say. I think everyone has the mentality, and I’m guilty of it too, is you go in there and you try to position your car that is whatever is best for yourself.

“Now there’s collateral damage that goes on way out on the right side of you that you never see. So it’s kind of out of sight, out of mind. And I think most drivers have that mentalty, is that ‘well I didn’t hit the person necessarily in front of me', not realizing that you probably jammed it in on three guys that are on the outside of you and there’s some collateral damage there.

The level of difficulty drivers face at Turn 1 is matched to an extent by the penalties for any ‘crimes’ committed, according to the Joe Gibbs Racing superstar.

“It’s easy to have a little bit of that lawlessness with less repercussions at Turn 1 at COTA than probably any corner that we’ve got on our schedule,” he added.

Ross Chastain admits Texas struggles

Trackhouse star Ross Chastain admits he struggles with the carnage of Turn 1, having been both the perpetrator and the victim in the past.

"I don't manage it very well. I've been spun out there in the O'Reilly Series race and I've spun people out. It's very challenging to find your brake marker. Restarts are a different speed than the normal laps. It helps now with the restarts all being moved back towards turn 20 but definitely challenging. I've made more than my fair share of mistakes.

“The track was designed to build a lot of speed, have a ton of braking potential with the uphill elevation climb to Turn 1, and then trying to make a turn back the other way is really difficult. But when you get it right, it's very rewarding."