Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs turned what should have been a relatively quiet afternoon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway into one of the biggest storylines of the weekend. The Joe Gibbs Racing teammates made contact multiple times throughout the race, culminating in an incident that left Gibbs frustrated and Hamlin refusing to comment after the checkered flag.
The drama began while racing for 11th place around lap 100. Hamlin, a playoff contender fighting to stay alive in the Round of 12, took issue with the way Gibbs was racing him. Over the team radio, Hamlin let his frustration be known. “Does Ty know we’re going for a championship? What the fuck. What the fuck is he doing?” Hamlin asked.
The two continued to battle aggressively, trading bumps and forcing each other up the racetrack. Hamlin repeatedly tried to clear Gibbs but could not complete the pass. The tension boiled over on lap 110 when Hamlin clipped Gibbs in the left rear entering turn one. Gibbs spun, nearly collecting their JGR teammate Christopher Bell, who was running directly behind them.
Full race results from New Hampshire
Gibbs was able to continue after the spin, but his race went downhill quickly. The contact eventually broke a toe link on the No. 54 Toyota, forcing the team to retire from the event. He finished 35th, a disappointing result on a day where he had been running inside the top 15.
Once Gibbs was officially out of the race, he made his feelings known. “Game on…” he said over the radio, signaling that there could be more to come between the two teammates. On television, Gibbs kept his answers short. “It’s unfortunate, but excited to get to race next week,” he said. Away from the cameras, he was a little more direct with reporters, simply saying, “We got wrecked.”
Hamlin, meanwhile, survived the incident and brought his car home in 12th. When reporters caught up with him after the race, he was in no mood to explain what happened. “I have no comment at this time,” Hamlin said. When pressed with a follow-up question, he repeated, “I have no comment,” before walking away.
The situation becomes even more complex when considering Hamlin’s future with Joe Gibbs Racing. Just this summer, Hamlin signed a two-year contract extension with the organization. After the race, team owner Joe Gibbs was seen speaking with Hamlin. While no audio of the conversation was available, the two clearly had a serious exchange.
Afterward, Joe Gibbs addressed the media, leaving the responsibility in the hands of his drivers. “It’s always the drivers that have to handle that. They’re the ones who have the wheel. That’s how we will handle that,” Gibbs said.
The incident leaves plenty of questions heading into next weekend. Will Gibbs retaliate? Will Hamlin regret losing his temper while fighting for a championship? And how will JGR handle the tension between its veteran star and its rising prospect? For now, the only certainty is that the spotlight will be firmly on the No. 11 and No. 54 cars when the field takes the green flag next week.
