NASCAR: Denny Hamlin Lays Blame For Race-Ending Daytona Crash

The Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway saw Denny Hamlin’s hopes crash, literally and figuratively, as multiple cars collided in a major wreck during Stage 2.

Denny Hamlin pointed the finger at Corey LaJoie for initiating the pivotal crash that reshaped the course of the race. In a message exchange with Eric Estepp of Out of the Groove on X, Hamlin did not mince words. “7 caused it,” he declared, citing LaJoie’s car number as the cause of the turmoil.

Whilst speaking to the media after the race, Hamlin commented, as quoted by Yardbarker.com:

“Well, Stage 1 everyone was kind of going all out there because we’re inside that fuel window where we’re able to run 100% and get to the end of the stage.

“Then Stage 2, obviously a little fuel saving going on which causes a little stack up. Just seemed like some guys wanted to go, some guys didn’t and it just caused a little contact there.”

Adding to Hamlin’s frustrations were pre-race issues in the form of a significant 75-point penalty that also docked him 10 playoff points, positioning the Daytona crash as a particularly costly setback.

In response to the severe penalty, Toyota Racing released the following statement, as quoted by Autosport:

“As the engine builder for our partner NASCAR Cup Series teams, TRD is solely responsible for the handling and disposition of all our engines pre- and post-race,” it said.

“Despite procedures being in place, Denny’s race-winning engine from Bristol was mistakenly returned to our Costa Mesa facility, disassembled and rebuilt instead of being torn down and inspected by NASCAR per the rulebook.

“Although we know with absolute certainty that the engine was legal and would have passed inspection, we left NASCAR in an impossible position because they were not given the opportunity to properly inspect our engine.

“We have reviewed our processes and have implemented several additional steps to ensure that this never happens again.

“TRD takes full responsibility for this grievous mistake, and we apologise to Denny, Chris, Coach Gibbs, the entire JGR organisation, NASCAR and our fans.”

NASCAR Cup Series: Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway Results

1. Harrison Burton – 20 | Running
2. Kyle Busch – 11 | Running
3. Christopher Bell – 27 | Running
4. Cody Ware – 33 | Running
5. Ty Gibbs – 26 | Running
6. Bubba Wallace – 18 | Running
7. Parker Retzlaff – 29 | Running
8. Brad Keselowski – 12 | Running
9. Daniel Hemric – 28 | Running
10. Chris Buescher – 13 | Running
11. Carson Hocevar – 37 | Running
12. Ross Chastain – 24 | Running
13. Zane Smith – 30 | Running
14. Chase Briscoe – 6 | Running
15. John H. Nemechek – 31 | Running
16. Alex Bowman – 21 | Running
17. Erik Jones – 40 | Running
18. Austin Cindric – 8 | Running
19. BJ McLeod – 38 | Running
20. Joey Gase – 39 | Running
21. Kyle Larson – 9 | Running
22. Austin Dillon – 16 | Running
23. Todd Gilliland – 2 | Running
24. Martin Truex Jr – 17 | Running
25. Austin Hill – 23 | Accident
26. Josh Berry – 5 | Accident
27. William Byron – 7 | Accident
28. Tyler Reddick – 25 | Accident
29. Ryan Blaney – 14 | Accident
30. Michael McDowell – 1 | Accident
31. Joey Logano – 3 | Accident
32. Justin Haley – 36 | Accident
33. Ricky Stenhouse Jr – 35 | Accident
34. Corey LaJoie – 34 | Running
35. Shane Van Gisbergen – 32 | Engine
36. Chase Elliott – 10 | Accident
37. Noah Gragson – 15 | Accident
38. Denny Hamlin – 19 | Accident
39. Ryan Preece – 4 | DVP
40. Daniel Suárez – 22 | Fire