“TV Sells It as if He’s an Actual Crew Chief!” Denny Hamlin Slams Kyle Busch Over Controversial Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jibe

Denny Hamlin doesn’t appreciate his ex-Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch comments about Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s crew chief debut.

“TV Sells It as if He’s an Actual Crew Chief!” Denny Hamlin Slams Kyle Busch Over Controversial Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jibe

Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Via IMAGO)

The Pocono Xfinity race weekend was a special year for Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. as he made his debut as a national series crew chief. He took over the leadership of Conor Zilisch with the No:88 crew chief serving a suspension. Junior won the race on his debut, marking a big marketing moment for the sport. But not everyone was impressed with the move, that includes RCR’s Kyle Busch.

The two times Xfinity Series champion was pretty open and bold about his feelings about the move, as he highlighted how Dale Earnhardt Jr. move is nothing more than a publicity stunt. He did clarify his comments later after backlash but remained firm on the idea. Now Kyle Busch’s ex-teammate Denny Hamlin has given his take on the whole controversy.

In the latest episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin asserted that Junior should be given the credit he deserves for his involvement, though he wasn’t doing the heavy lifting. The veteran isn’t okay with the veteran being called just a warm body, and believes Junior’s responsibility was balanced between the actual job and marketing side.

I think we’ve got to give Dale Jr. a little bit of due and certainly, don’t want to undersell the fact that the team was doing the heavy lifting. I think that the answer can be somewhere in between of Kyle Busch says he’s nothing but a warm body up there — the TV sells it as if he’s an actual crew chief — I think the answer is probably somewhere in between. But you still got to be responsible, right?

Denny Hamlin said via Actions Detrimental.

He then explained how things the whole crew chief role played out for the No:88 team with the original crew chief pulling most of the strings behind the scene. Junior most probably was involved with strategy, as being a two times Xfinity Series champion knows an opportunity to better on the track when he sees it.

You got to get the messages to the driver, and he saw opportunities, strategy wise, and he’s probably talking to the engineers about the strategy. The result was he was walking to Victory Lane at the end of that race and obviously, Connor drove that car fantastic.

Denny Hamlin added.

NASCAR insider backs Kyle Busch amidst the controversy

Senior NASCAR journalist Kelly Crandal shared his thoughts on the whole drama in the latest episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast. She highlighted how the comments were as accurate, considering the character of Junior, as he wants be backing down from making his voice heard during discussions.

Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch (Via @KyleBusch/X)

But at the same time what Kyle Busch said about the suspension of crew chiefs having almost no impact to the team in the digital age is correct as well. He made a valid argument for Juniors’ venture being there just for publicity.

Now, as for what Kyle said, I mean, he’s not wrong. I think we’re all well educated enough, even the race fans that understand to Kyle’s point. When crew chief gets suspended and we can keep reading, nothing. I mean, they are not physically there, but they are.

Kelly Crandal added.

At the end of the day, Kyle Busch made some strong points that might inspire NASCAR to look into how effective the suspensions are and what they need to change. Dale Jr. by winning the race also shut down some of the criticism that came his way, making it a memorable race for everyone involved for good and bad.

Also Read: Denny Hamlin Confesses It’s “Painful” to See 23XI Racing’s Struggle