Denny Hamlin Grills Dodge Over Potential 2027 NASCAR Return

What’s Happening?

NASCAR Cup Series driver and team owner Denny Hamlin questioned the intentions behind Dodge’s rumored 2027 return to the NASCAR Cup Series during the latest episode of his podcast, asking whether or not Kaulig’s struggles in the Truck Series are an indication that they may not be ready for the sport’s highest level.

Last week, NASCAR fans found themselves pleasantly surprised when Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic reported that Dodge could make its return to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2027.

While there is no guarantee that the manufacturer will return to action by February, this matches a bold timeline that Stellantis’ Head of American Brands Tim Kuniskis first proposed last season, shortly after Ram announced its return to the Craftsman Truck Series this season.

For the most part, fans are excited about the prospect of the NASCAR Cup Series growing to four manufacturers for the first time since 2012, though there are still some questioning the potential bold steps that Dodge is taking.

One person who is still asking questions is 23XI Racing co-owner and Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, who shared his thoughts about Dodge’s potential 2027 return during the latest episode of his podcast Actions Detrimental.

In particular, Hamlin asked about the intentions behind this possible bold jump for Dodge, wondering if it was more about the marketing side or if they “really, truly want to compete.”

“While we would love another manufacturer, they [Ram] are struggling to run 15th in trucks. . . I know they want to get in there, I don’t know how much of that is like just a marketing play versus like you really, really truly want to compete.” — Denny Hamlin

Hamlin, in a somewhat joking manner, asked if this new report was saying that Dodge would run just the Daytona 500, given the struggles that would come from launching a NASCAR program in just around two years’ time.

Of course, Hamlin did note that he understands why Dodge may be keen to get their name on track and worry about the progression of their program as time goes on.

“Does that mean they’re just going to run Daytona or the whole year? Because talk about going to be on the struggle bus,” Hamlin said. “That would be a major, major struggle unless the goal is just ‘let’s get our name out there, let’s get our activation like we want it, have a presence at the track.”

The team owner then turned his attention toward the major hurdle that Dodge has to clear, finding an engine manufacturer.

During a Monday afternoon appearance on the Door Bumper Clear podcast, in which he clarified that Dodge has yet to commit to racing in the Cup Series during the 2027 season, Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice said that building an engine program is the main issue for the OEM right now.

Hamlin echoed this but added that even if the brand sorts out an engine program in time, he is still concerned about how Ram is performing in the Truck Series, a series that uses a spec, or single supplier, engine package.

“My concern is that they’re really, really struggling in the Truck Series. And again, they’re all running the same motors, I believe, in the trucks.” — Denny Hamlin

He even name-dropped Ram driver Corey LaJoie, acknowledging that the Ram drivers are limited as they do not have access to data or sim sessions like drivers in the other three camps. Furthermore, Kaulig, who has traditionally competed in the Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, is having to learn about the Truck Series as the season progresses.

Despite these often cited factors, Hamlin said that Kaulig’s current level of competition is shocking, given that they do have Cup Series engineers on their staff.

“Listen, I hear you, Corey LaJoie, and many others. You don’t have the simulation that the others have,” Hamlin said. “But you’re still a Cup team, you still have smart enough people that you’re still with a Cup organization, so, to me. . . they’re underperforming from what even I thought they would.”

Nonetheless, as many other team owners and industry members have echoed, Hamlin has no opposition to a new manufacturer joining the sport, saying that his stance is the more there are, the better it is for NASCAR.

Still, Hamlin says regarding Dodge, “You don’t want them to have a bad experience,” something that could happen if they jump the gun in launching their Cup Series program.

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