Denny Hamlin: ‘My respect for Kyle Busch is pretty high’

For years, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch were teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing. Both drivers wanted to be the top driver for the organization. While the two grew to be friends during that time, it has been the last couple of years, on different teams, that the NASCAR drivers have become close.

Relationships between teammates can be strange. There are some teammates who get along, hang out, they are the best of friends. Then there are those who are constantly competing with one another, at each other’s throats, and trying to do whatever they can to best that other driver.

Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin are both polarizing figures in NASCAR. They have brash personalities. But maybe that’s why they get along.

Hamlin talked to Kevin Harvick about his relationship with Rowdy and how that has changed since he left JGR for RCR.

“I think Kyle and Carl almost did one time, Matt Kenseth probably can tell that story a little better. I never really had a lot of confrontations, I did have a few moments. There was the All-Star Race at Charlotte where he thought I air-blocked him into the wall. I was in the lead, I don’t know how that happened. There was others, at Atlanta where we were racing each other a little silly during the race where there was a difference of opinion.

“My respect for Kyle is pretty high. I really have a ton of respect for Kyle, I almost envision our relationship very similar to mine and Tony Stewart’s where we actually became better friends when we were not teammates. I think when we were teammates it was too much of competition.

“I’ll never forget the first test that Kyle came over and we were at Atlanta. We kept one-upping each other every time we’d go out, we’d keep making each other go faster. And Kyle is like, ‘Yeah I really wanted to set the barometer of like, let you know I’m the man here now.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, really?’ It was always a friendly competition but also a fierce competition between us, but I just respect the hell out of his talent. He’s just such a gifted driver and he always gets the best out of any equipment that he’s been in.”

Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin are the active wins leaders in the Cup Series. Busch at 63 wins and two championships. Meanwhile, Hamlin has 52 wins and just about every crown jewel you can think of, sans a championship.

Two great competitors on the track and former teammates who are nearing the end of their careers. Once the young upstarts, pi--ing off the veterans of the series, they now sit in that veteran role.