While fans expressing displeasure with Hamlin isn’t new – especially since his public on-track run-in with Chase Elliott in 2017 – Sunday’s demonstration was particularly vocal.
The added intensity was likely the result of Hamlin’s move to shove then-race leader Kyle Larson up the track and into the wall on a restart with just seven laps remaining.
Hamlin used the move to take the lead and then held off fellow Toyota drivers Martin Truex Jr. and Tyler Reddick until a last-lap caution secured his victory.
The win was a big one for Hamlin – the 50th of his Cup career, seventh at Pocono and Toyota’s 600th victory across NASCAR’s three national series – Cup, Xfinity and Trucks.
The 42-year-old native of Chesterfield, Va., said he wasn’t going to let the fan outcry diminish the significance of the moment.
“I mean, I’m just too old to care. Had I gotten another 20 years ahead of me, I get it,” Hamlin said after Sunday’s race. “Fandom doesn’t give me trophies. Fandom doesn’t do the job for me.
“In my career, just had some pivotal moments getting into guys when they were super-popular, I just kind of wasn’t. I’m okay with it because the fans are passionate about what they saw.
“I think if you were a Denny Hamlin fan, and there was that many, then maybe you’d hear the same thing.”
Hamlin lamented that he “never really resonated with fans” during his career.
“I got here on hard work, the old-fashioned way. I’m just not that likable, which is okay,” he said. “I mean, I think I’m just not one of those good ol' boys, right?
“I’m myself. I am. Try to treat people really well, do the right things, let the fans cheer for whoever they want. But as long as they’re making some sort of noise, it’s okay.”
Sunday’s battle with Larson for the win took on a more interesting narrative simply because the two drivers are good friends off the track.
After the incident, Larson said he would not let the issue ruin a friendship, but that he was “pissed, and I feel like I should be pissed.”
While Hamlin maintained he didn’t believe he made contact with Larson on the track, he doesn’t believe that would make a difference in the end.
“I had to race hard for a win. Was I going to let off and give him all this extra room? Absolutely not. No way,” he said. “I wanted to race side-by-side because I earned the spot of getting beside him.
“I don’t feel like there was any contact. From what I saw, I ran up into the middle lane, and after that we ran really close to each other. He got in an aero tight situation that made his car take off. That was it.
“But it’s hard racing. Certainly nothing intentional. I think the best way to win them is duel it out side-by-side. That’s how I thought we were going to come off of Turn 2.”
