Denny Hamlin sounds off on Bubba Wallace flipping him off, reaction after heated Kansas finish

Bubba Wallace didn’t hide how he felt about Denny Hamlin after Sunday’s Round of 12 race at Kansas Speedway. Wallace flipped Hamlin the middle finger and later called him out.

Hamlin got a run down the backstretch on the final lap of overtime, getting even with Wallace for the lead heading into Turn 3. Hamlin washed up the track, and Wallace brushed the wall. That allowed Chase Elliott to race by on the bottom and take the checkered flag. Hamlin said on Monday’s “Actions Detrimental” podcast that he had no issue with Wallace giving him the middle finger. The way he sees it, Wallace was upset at Hamlin the driver, not Hamlin the 23XI Racing co-owner.

“If he were to flip me off in 23XI as the car owner, we’d have employer-employee problems. But as a competitor, he’s flipping off the driver of the 11. I don’t have an issue with that,” Hamlin said. “I think you can motherf*ck the driver of the 11 because you’re upset that the finish didn’t go as you hoped, but anything directed to me as an owner, I would certainly, certainly have exception to that. As an owner, I know the tremendous resources that myself and Michael [Jordan] give Bubba every single week to go out and compete.

“We have invested a ton to make sure our drivers have the best cars possible, we’re constantly looking to improve. I don’t take that personal as the owner, I’m assuming we got someone that’s in the game, on the field in a heated moment, and I give him grace on that. On Sunday, we are competitors. We compete on Sunday.”

Denny Hamlin, Bubba Wallace battled for the win at Kansas… neither won

Wallace badly needed a win at Kansas after a disappointing performance the week prior at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He came into the race minus-27 below the playoff cutline and even after finishing fifth at Kansas, he only made up a single point. Wallace now faces a near must-win situation this Sunday at the Charlotte ROVAL. Wallace has never won on a road course.

His frustrations were evident after the race: “To even have a shot at the win with the way we started… we were not good. I really appreciate the team. Two years ago, I would say something dumb, [Hamlin] is a dumbass for that move, for sure. I don’t care if he’s my boss or not. But we were going for the win.”

Hamlin found Wallace to be “measured” in his interview when he stepped out of his car. He agreed with Wallace that if this happened two or three years ago, his interview would have gone completely different.

“I think he was a little more measured out of the car,” Hamlin said. “I appreciate his interview… Think he handled it as good as he could and had as good an attitude as he could. No matter what he felt on the inside, I think he did a great job of showing his passion, voicing his displeasure without being over the top.

“I thought he was very measured outside of the car. Certainly, I agree with him. We could have seen a different interview a couple years ago, right?”