NASCAR star Denny Hamlin reacts to shock Jim France exit

Cup Series star Denny Hamlin has reacted to Jim France stepping down as NASCAR's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), arguing it was time for some 'fresh blood' at the top of the sport.

NASCAR announced on Saturday that France would be stepping down from the role he has held since 2018, being replaced by now former President, Steve O'Donnell, with immediate effect.

France, though, does remain as NASCAR Chairman and retains his ownership stake.

Elsewhere, NASCAR also promoted Ben Kennedy, the great-grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., to Chief Operating Officer (COO).

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Denny Hamlin on Jim France CEO exit

Reacting to the news at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, Hamlin told the media, via Steven Taranto: “I don't know, just what we learnt in December is the board still controls everything.

“But certainly I think it's a promotion for Steve [O’Donnell] and Ben [Kennedy], and so those guys will be the ones that lead us going forward.”

Of course, Hamlin’s 23XI were involved in a bitter legal battle with NASCAR last season, which ended in a settlement in December. After confirming relations were in an okay place, Hamlin offered a balanced assessment of France’s tenure, but added he thought it was time for some ‘fresh blood’ at the top of the sport.

Hamlin: It was time for fresh blood

“It was an unfortunate situation that went as far as it did,” Hamlin said on the lawsuit. “But I think that everyone learnt a lot from that,

“He [France] had to come in and face a challenging situation, right, having to step in, and obviously COVID was something that they had to navigate that I thought they did very well.

“There’s just a lot of things, right. He wanted to see our sport head down a certain path, and some were successes, some were not.

"I guess you’ll have that no matter who’s in charge. Not everyone’s going to bat 100%, and I certainly feel like it was time to get some fresh blood in there who sees things perhaps a little differently.”