Denny Hamlin expressed concern about his teammate Kyle Busch. The two-time Cup Series champion finished 16th on Saturday in Richmond, continuing a streak of average performances. But his latest showing raised serious alarms within the team.
Hamlin criticized Busch’s reckless driving during parts of the race, calling it atypical and impossible to overlook.
A recurring issue
According to The Sports Rush, Hamlin told Actions Detrimental what he witnessed during the race. He even felt the need to approach Busch and ask if he was okay.
“It was so strange. We were under caution and suddenly, ‘Boom.’ I thought, ‘What the hell?’ I guess he was heating up his tires and just shutting me down.”
Denny Hamlin referenced Kyle Busch unintentionally dooring him under caution on Actions Detrimental, so I went back and looked. Looked like Busch had to check up for Alex Bowman just before the Lap 196 restart and Hamlin just happened to be there when he swerved left a touch.
“I… pic.twitter.com/VGnZ7s7hgj— Steven Taranto (@STaranto92) August 18, 2025
The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran clarified the contact wasn’t intentional. However, he worried Busch might repeat those moves with other drivers, like Chase Elliott.
“I wanted to be genuine, like, ‘Hey man, how are you doing? Are you okay?’ He wrecked two cars, then passed the #9 and hit him on the exit. I don’t know, man. It just didn’t look good,” Hamlin explained.
Chaos on lap 196
The incident occurred on lap 196 in Richmond. NASCAR reporter Steven Taranto noted that Busch looked behind Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman before the restart. Hamlin was on the right when Busch made a slight turn.
Two laps later, the situation escalated. Busch got caught in a 12-car crash. Even though he wasn’t directly responsible for drivers like Hamlin, Elliott, and Brad Keselowski, he has faced similar troubles all season.
Currently, Busch sits 148 points below the playoff elimination line. With only one race left at Daytona International Speedway, he has one last chance to prove he still has the skills to compete for a championship.
