Denny Hamlin Defends Next-Gen Cars Amid Flipping Controversy – ‘I’d Rather Flip’

Veteran NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin has voiced a strong defense of the Next-Gen cars, despite recent incidents that raised concerns within the sport. During the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin explicitly favored the safety of these vehicles – a surprise after so many other drivers have voiced their complaints.

The controversy arose following the race weekend at Michigan, where drivers Kyle Seig and Corey LaJoie experienced dramatic flips.

Seig’s vehicle took flight in the Xfinity race after a clash, and LaJoie’s No.7 Chevy became airborne in a similar fashion. These incidents have sparked a significant debate on whether the new car designs are compromising driver safety.

However, Hamlin, a seasoned driver with extensive experience, presented a compelling case for the safety enhancements of the Next-Gen cars.

“Yes. It’s not a concern on my end. Yes (I’d rather flip over) than hit a wall,” Hamlin argued. “I guess statistically speaking there’s always anomalies.

“There’s always instances where cars go airborne, and we had that incident at Talladega with Brad Keselowski, Ryan Newman,” he added.

Hamlin continued:

“We’ve had cars get up in the catch fences and there’s been some collateral damage from that. But generally speaking, I feel like from a driver safety perspective we haven’t had a whole lot of flips equal bad injuries.

“We’ve had contact with wall equal bad injuries.”

The real threat lies in the solid, unforgiving barriers rather than the car flipping.

Beyond discussing car safety, Hamlin also critiqued NASCAR’s management of race cautions, particularly towards the end of races. His comments followed an incident involving Ross Chastain after he hit the wall halfway through.

“I just think that, listen, he hit the wall there’s no question about that. I don’t know think he went below a hundred miles an hour, like he kept going at a decent rate of speed. Did it warrant a caution? No, has it been a caution in other circumstances? Yes, so it’s just one of those 50/50 calls and they chose to do it,” he explained.

“My only question is it seems like they are starting to get quick on that trigger finger again.”

This season has seen its fair share of drama, with numerous races extending into overtime—a scenario that some argue adds unnecessary suspense. The race in Nashville, for example, faced five overtime restarts.

NASCAR Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway Results

1. Tyler Reddick – 23XI Racing
2. William Byron – Hendrick Motorsports
3. Ty Gibbs – Joe Gibbs Racing
4. Kyle Busch – Richard Childress Racing
5. Brad Keselowski – RFK Racing
6. Chris Buescher – RFK Racing
7. Zane Smith – Spire Motorsports
8. Daniel Suárez – Trackhouse Racing
9. Denny Hamlin – Joe Gibbs Racing
10. Carson Hocevar – Spire Motorsports
11. Ryan Preece – Stewart-Haas Racing
12. Noah Gragson – Stewart-Haas Racing
13. Ricky Stenhouse Jr – JTG Daugherty Racing
14. Harrison Burton – Wood Brothers Racing
15. Chase Elliott – Hendrick Motorsports
16. Erik Jones – Legacy Motor Club
17. Austin Dillon – Richard Childress Racing
18. Ryan Blaney – Team Penske
19. Michael McDowell – Front Row Motorsports
20. Justin Haley – Rick Ware Racing
21. Cody Ware – Rick Ware Racing
22. Josh Berry – Stewart-Haas Racing
23. Daniel Hemric – Kaulig Racing
24. Martin Truex Jr – Joe Gibbs Racing
25. Ross Chastain – Trackhouse Racing
26. Bubba Wallace – 23XI Racing
27. Alex Bowman – Hendrick Motorsports
28. Austin Cindric – Team Penske
29. John H. Nemechek – Legacy Motor Club
30. AJ Allmendinger – Kaulig Racing
31. Chase Briscoe – Stewart-Haas Racing – Suspended
32. Corey LaJoie – Spire Motorsports – DNF
33. Joey Logano – Team Penske – DNF
34. Kyle Larson – Hendrick Motorsports – DNF
35. Christopher Bell – Joe Gibbs Racing – DNF
36. Todd Gilliland – Front Row Motorsports – DNF