Denny Hamlin Claims Richard Childress Door-Slammed JGR Rental Car
The battle to win a race in the NASCAR Cup Series is intense. But, apparently, equally as intense is the battle to get to the airport to head home following a 400-mile event. According to Denny Hamlin, in the latest episode of the Actions Detrimental Podcast, Richard Childress, team owner of Richard Childress Racing, collided with a Joe Gibbs Racing rental car following Sunday's race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Hamlin, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, who was part of a Joe Gibbs Racing police escort to the airport says that Childress didn't feel like waiting for the police escort to clear before continuing his trip to the airport.
“Let me tell you how important it is to not lose the draft,” Hamlin joked. “Richard Childress was not part of this escort. He was part of the vehicles that needed to move out of [the way]. The police got him to move out of the way.
“Well, somebody, within Joe Gibbs Racing [left] a gap, and Richard says, ‘Well, I’m joining this escort whether you guys like it or not.’ And he forced his way in."
The only problem? The Joe Gibbs Racing escort didn't feel like just letting Childress into their line of vehicles.
"Well, this [JGR] employee says, ‘No you can’t just join in,’ so he pulled up beside him," Hamlin detailed.
Thus began a battle of epic proportions on a public road.
"What did Richard Childress do? He hung a left, [and] destroyed the side of the car," Hamlin said. "He did, he turned left, I witnessed, we were right behind it. I’m like, ‘Oh my god, did he just, he did.’ And I was like, ‘Jared pull up, pull up to the car.’ The right side of the JGR car was destroyed and Richard he just stayed in the gas. I mean, hung a left on them and just doored the s--t out of our car. I couldn’t believe it.”
Hamlin shared a photo of the damage to the Joe Gibbs Racing rental car to prove that he wasn't telling a tall tale.
Here is the full episode of the Actions Detrimental Podcast, where Hamlin talks about the incident in the police escort line involving Richard Childress:
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Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.