Why Kyle Petty's strong remarks toward Denny Hamlin are not far-fetched

Denny Hamlin has had a highly successful career and is only four wins shy of reaching the 60-win milestone in the NASCAR Cup Series.

His two wins earlier this season in back-to-back weeks at Martinsville (March 30) and Darlington (April 6) gave him 56 for his career. In the five points-paying races since then, Hamlin has only produced one top-five finish (Bristol) and three finishes outside the top 20.

He had one of the fastest cars in Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and would have been battling for the lead with William Byron and eventual winner Ross Chastain until his pit crew failed to get enough fuel in his car during a green-flag stop with 53 laps to go, forcing him to make an unscheduled stop with 12 laps remaining while he was running third.

Former NASCAR driver Kyle Petty weighed in on Sunday's race and discussed multiple topics during the debut episode of his "Kiss My Asphalt" podcast, including which drivers he would like to see find Victory Lane before Hamlin reaches the 60-win milestone.

"We see Tyler Reddick, we see these young drivers are hungry," Petty said, per On3. "It's a changing time in this sport, and we are very blessed to be able to be here to see it. I love Denny Hamlin, I hope he gets to 60 (wins). But I'm telling you something, I hope Carson Hocevar gets his one or two before Denny gets to 60."

Petty is referring to the young talent in the sport and how fortunate we are to watch these drivers make a name for themselves and prove they belong, as Hocevar continues to do each week.

For Reddick, who drives for the 23XI Racing team co-owned by Hamlin and NBA legend Michael Jordan, he is already an eight-time winner in the Cup Series, so it is expected to see him in contention for multiple wins before Hamlin gets to 60.

Hocevar has displayed his talent multiple times. Look no further than Sunday night's crown jewel race when he was battling Hamlin for the lead before his engine expired on a Lap 308 restart, ending his night in 34th.

While his aggressive nature has rubbed several drivers the wrong way and prevented him from getting some of the finishes he deserved, it would not be a surprise to see him reach Victory Lane soon.

With that said, Hamlin is not going anywhere. Despite a difficult month of May that featured engine and clutch issues at Texas and Kansas, respectively, ultimately capped off with the 16th-place finish on Sunday night, Hamlin has had speed and looks as strong as anyone in the Cup Series garage at the moment.

Petty's comments are sure to stir up some conversation, but everything he said is certainly possible, given Reddick's versatility and what Hocevar has shown so far. Still, Hamlin has won multiple races each of the last seven seasons, which shows he has plenty left in the tank as the sport's younger drivers aim to knock him off the pedestal.