Following his disappointing exit in the Round of 8, Denny Hamlin was subject to scrutiny once again because he still has not won a Cup Series Championship. Eddie Gossage, the former track president of Texas Motor Speedway, had some pretty scathing comments saying that Hamlin lacks focus and intelligence. He claimed to have been told this by a crew chief and two crew members, so, is there an objective truth to these comments?
Lacks Focus
What those who told Gossage were likely referring to with this were how many different things Denny Hamlin is involved in. He is a busy guy as most race car drivers are. However, his professional life is more complicated than many others are.
Hamlin co-owns a race team, 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan. Hamlin also has a podcast, Actions Detrimental, that starts or contributes to many NASCAR conversations. He also has two kids, so, he has to balance time with family as many race car drivers do.
He’s involved in a lot of different things. Now, there is obviously nothing wrong with a driver spending his time away from the race team he drives for doing things that Denny Hamlin is doing. Some drivers elect to spend their free time away from the race track, but Hamlin likes to be involved in many things at the race track.
Again, since Hamlin started 23XI Racing in 2021, he has made a Championship 4 in 2021, and he is a Hail Melon and a power steering failure away from likely making two more. He’s still found ways to win races, so, is it really fair to say he is not focused enough on his driving team? On the outside looking in, however, he does have his hand in many places.
Lacks Intelligence
Now, this probably was not Eddie Gossage saying that Denny Hamlin has a low IQ. Just listen to an episode of Actions Detrimental, and you will see that Hamlin is not a dumb human being. What likely is being questioned here is Hamlin’s emotional intelligence and handling of the conflict between himself and drivers.
Hamlin is known for being intentionally controversial, and he has put himself in not great situations before. The shining example of this would be Phoenix earlier this year when he decided to exact his revenge on Ross Chastain. This happened as both drivers were fighting well in the top 10, but they fell back because of this late in an early season race. A questionable retaliation tactic.
Hamlin was later penalized for admitting it on Actions Detrimental. Hamlin also put himself on the wrong side of the fanbase after wrecking Chase Elliott at Martinsville in 2017. Elliott retaliated two races alter at Phoenix, and that cost Hamlin a Championship 4 spot.
Well, Hamlin has been in some tough situations that have cost him Championship opportunities, and some of it has been because of his own actions. Of course, as was evidenced by the last couple of years, not all of it has been because of his bad decisions. Some of it has been because of things that happened out of his control as a driver. However, he has made some questionable decisions.
Eddie Gossage is an interesting person in the racing industry. He is a big personality, and he truly was a throwback type of track president. He was not afraid to push the envelope, and he has contacts in the racing industry.
He has been in the sport long enough that he knows people either currently in the garage or people who have been in that garage for a long time. He knows people. However, Gossage is also someone who has been a bit of a wild personality. This is a guy who gave Dale Earnhardt Jr. a horse as a retirement gift.
He is also not totally well-liked in the NASCAR fanbase for being the track president during the highly criticized reconfiguration of Texas Motor Speedway. Now, how much influence he really had over that may not be as big as some people claim. However, as a result of that and his antics, people tend to take his opinions with a grain of salt.
Regardless, he is someone with connections in the racing industry. He knows people, and those people likely know more than the general population knows.
Overall, it’s impossible to really tell whether or not these comments are accurate. There could be some truth to them, but, ultimately, we do not know.
Where do all the drivers stand after the first official points race in the standings table?
After winning the opening points race of the season at Daytona by leading one lap, Tyler Reddick made it to the top of the standings. Under the new rules, he managed to pull up 58 points. He pocketed 55 for the win and added three more by finishing Stage 2 in P8. He may have squeezed out at least one more had he landed inside the top 10 in Stage 1, but after getting swept into a Lap 5 crash, Reddick limped the Stage 1 in P20, giving him no extra points.
Rounding out the top 10 are Brad Keselowski with 39 points in sixth despite a P5 finish, followed by his driver, Chris Buescher, in seventh with 39, Bubba Wallace in eighth with 37, Carson Hocevar in ninth with 36, and Ryan Blaney in 10th with 36.
Atlanta could be a springboard for Elliott, who owns an average finish of 11.4 across 14 starts there, with two wins, including one in last year’s fall race, plus three top fives and nine top 10s. The track could also pull Kyle Busch back into contention. Having already shown his speed at Daytona by winning the pole, he may potentially pull it off at the 1.54-mile track. The RCR driver sits P14 in the standings, but with an average finish of 8.8 at Atlanta since 2023 across six starts, the place might finally snap his 94-race drought.
Then again, Connor Zilisch has only one start at the track and came home P11 last year when he made his third Cup start there, making Atlanta a stage where he could stamp his mark.
Ryan Blaney will also have a better chance than anyone else to climb through a win or even points alone at Atlanta. The No. 12 Team Penske driver has one win there from 2021, but consistency has been his strong suit, with seven top fives and nine top 10s in 15 starts. And that puts him in a position to move the needle when the field rumbles into Atlanta.
Join the discussion on Discord or X, and remember to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for more updates.
The Daytona 500 and Speedweeks may be over, but that doesn’t mean the chaos will cool off for the stars of NASCAR’s three National Series, as they roll into Hampton, Georgia, to the high banks of EchoPark Speedway for one of the schedule’s most unique race weekends.
Note: This article will be updated as more information about the weekend comes out.
One race weekend is in the books, and a 36-week march back to Florida is underway for the three NASCAR National Series. Whether you are going to be at the track or home, what does the forecast look like for the race weekend in Hampton, Georgia?
Before the Races (10:00 AM – 2:00 PM)
During the Truck Race (2:00 PM – 5:00 PM)
During the OAP Series Race (5:00 PM – 8:00 PM)
After the Race (8:00 PM – 11:00 PM)
Before the Race (11:00 AM – 3:00 PM)
During the Race (3:00 PM – 7:00 PM)
After the Race (7:00 PM – 10:00 PM)
NASCAR got lucky at EchoPark in 2025, and, as a matter of fact, everywhere else, but that doesn’t mean weather hasn’t affected the track’s races in the past with spot showers and major showers taking on race weekends. Take the summer of 2023, when the race took on a large rain shower that resulted in the race ending after just 185 laps, with race winner William Byron the leader at the time of caution.
Note: This article will be updated with a more accurate and detailed forecast as the race weekend nears.
