Denny Hamlin undaunted by fans booing him in his home track Richmond, urges them to keep the volume up

Denny Hamlin is one of the most hated drivers in the NASCAR Cup garage.

Denny Hamlin undaunted by fans booing him in his home track Richmond, urges them to keep the volume up

Denny Hamlin (Via IMAGO)

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin didn’t get the welcome he envisaged coming to his home track last Sunday. He was welcomed with boos from his home track of Richmond during the driver intro. But the three times Daytona 500 winner is unfazed by the fan’s reactions and encourages them to keep the volume up.

Hamlin’s outspoken nature and the multiple run-ins he had on track with some of the fan-favorite drivers over the years have turned the fans against him. It peaked at Pocono, where the No:11 Toyota Camry driver walled HMS’s Kyle Larson on the final laps to secure his second win of the 2023 season. He was welcomed with boos on the tricky triangle victory lane, and the same occurred a week after at Richmond.

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While talking about the fan reaction to his home track on his podcast, Action Detrimental, Hamlin said that he doesn’t care about the boos and urges the fans to keep the volume up if they are booing him or cheering him.

“Give me all you got in the boos, buddy, as you can see, my care level is so low on that. Just keep making noise, please! When they call my name, don’t just sit there. Don’t clap. I either want a loud shout or give me all you got in the boos, I want noise, I want volume!” Hamlin said.

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Denny Hamlin had a similar reaction to the fans booing at Pocono as well

Denny Hamlin
Denny Hamlin (Credits: @Joegibsracing/Twitter)

While talking about the boos from fans two weeks prior, he pointed out that he is too old to care about how fans react to him and his actions on the track. He said it’s on him to race well and produce a solid result, and fandom can’t do it for him. Hamlin added that he is okay with the negative reactions as it comes from passionate fans.

“I mean, I’m just too old to care. Had I gotten another 20 years ahead of me, I get it. 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,” Hamlin said.

One way Hamlin can end fans booing, at least to a certain extent, is to win a championship he has been logging for years. He is the winningest driver in the sport’s history without a title. He has a shot at doing it in 2023, with JGR having a solid season so far.

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