Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin has responded after NASCAR rival Kyle Busch warned he could make his life 'hell'.
Busch's comments came in response to a frank assessment of the recent years of his career on Hamlin's Actions Detrimental podcast this week, in which Hamlin suggested that Busch has been on the decline for five years and that he should be getting more out of his car.
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Those words did not go down well with Busch, who responded at Kansas on Saturday with a stern warning for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.
“If Denny wants to switch cars, I'll switch cars with him any day of the week, anytime,” Busch stated frankly in a media scrum at Kansas Speedway, as shared by Jeff Gluck. “I would love for him to show me that he can carry it better than I can.”
“I have consumed some of it over time, and I've consumed that 80% of it, people don’t know what they’re talking about,” Busch continued after being asked if he was aware of the discourse on social media.
“And in this instance, I don't feel like Denny Hamlin even knows what the hell he's talking about. So he can bash me all he wants, and I can certainly make his life hell.”
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Denny Hamlin responds to Kyle Busch comments
Hamlin saw those comments on social media and decided to issue a reply, although the JGR star doesn't feel that his comments were bashing Busch at all.
"Not really sure what I’m supposed to do," Hamlin wrote on X.
"I host a podcast, and I have to answer questions about relevant topics. Should I just say I dunno, everything seems fine to me?
"Not sure where he felt I “bashed”. I'm walking a damn tight rope here."
What did Hamlin say about Busch on Actions Detrimental?
Do you feel like Hamlin bashed Busch? His comments are below, so you can make up your own mind.
Speaking after another disappointing weekend for Busch at Bristol, Hamlin said: “We keep talking about this, but the last couple of years (at Joe Gibbs Racing) was not good; it’s been like this for five years.
"You’re a Hall of Fame, Mount Rushmore driver, and if you’re of the greatest, then carry better than your teammate that’s only won ten races. I think he should be able to do that, but it’s not happening.”
Hamlin continued: “This is just my opinion, and I can’t hold a helmet to Kyle Busch on talent, but I just think that this is not new. He’s struggled for five years now, so we just have to be honest about our expectations.
“If you’re expecting Kyle Busch to just go back to victory lane, you’re going to be very disappointed. I just think that, until we change the car or something changes, something has to change, and I have no idea. I’m not in his shoes. I’m not his crew chief. I’m not his engineer, and I’m not his team owner. I’m not in the weeds.
"I’m just a podcaster that happens to be on the race track around him, and I can say it’s not working. I don’t have the answers, and I think we have to live in this reality for the time being.”
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