Denny Hamlin shares opinion on NASCAR rescinding Ryan Blaney’s disqualification

Denny Hamlin gave NASCAR their flowers for rescinding Ryan Blaney’s disqualification in Las Vegas last weekend.

Since becoming a team owner with 23XI Racing, Hamlin has taken a keener interest in all facets of the sport, including the each and every page of the rule book. He’s never been afraid to share his opinions, and that’s no different when it comes to Blaney’s reversed-disqualification.

Speaking with the media ahead of NASCAR’s second race in the Round of 8 at Homestead this weekend, Hamlin made his stance on the matter known, stating that it was the “right call” to return Blaney’s points to him.

“Denny Hamlin said NASCAR rescinding the DQ on Blaney was the right call by the sanctioning body,” tweeted FOX’s Bob Pockrass.

Moreover, Blaney was originally disqualified for an illegal shock on his car. At first, NASCAR believed the front left shock did not meet standards and as a result, NASCAR disqualified the playoff driver.

Blaney, one of the eight drivers remaining with a shot at winning the Cup Series championship, finished 6th at Las Vegas. He was 56 points below the cut-line for the Championship 4 after the disqualification, but now finds himself just 17 points back and seventh among the eight remaining title contenders, per Motorsport.

“I thought we could have maybe run third,” Blaney said after the race, via John Newby of NBC Sports. “That was probably the best we were gonna get to, but lost some ground there on the last stop and ran out of laps to get it back. Overall, it wasn’t a bad effort. You’re trying to get every point that you can because all of them matter.”

Alas, while Ryan Blaney may be a headache for Denny Hamlin in his chase for a NASCAR title, he’s standing for what’s right, and he believes NASCAR did that by rescinding the penalty from Las Vegas.

More on NASCAR rescinding disqualification penalty to Ryan Blaney from Las Vegas

Continuing, during a statement released Monday, NASCAR cited “further review of the inspection process” in making the decision. All of Blaney’s stage and race finishing positions from Sunday’s race were of course restored. 

“After further review of the inspection process throughout this weekend’s events at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, NASCAR has rescinded the No. 12 disqualification penalty,” NASCAR wrote, via Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports. “Monday morning during its race weekend debrief, NASCAR discovered an issue with the damper template used for inspection. NASCAR then conducted a detailed investigation, and restored the No. 12’s stage and race finishing positions from Sunday. 

“NASCAR has taken internal steps to remedy this issue moving forward.”