Denny Hamlin team set for change after NASCAR penalty

The hits just keep on coming for Denny Hamlin, and now the NASCAR great has another issue to deal with.

The 44-year-old superstar became this week’s biggest Cup Series storyline after his angry beef with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Ty Gibbs at New Hampshire.

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There has been significant fallout already from Denny wrecking Ty after becoming frustrated by his teammate racing him hard despite not being in the playoffs.

Denny, of course, has a title to chase - after 59 Cup Series race wins he is still searching for that elusive championship. And things had started so well with a Round of 16 victory at Gateway earlier this month.

Now Hamlin is in fifth place in the standings after a disappointing 12th-place finish at New Hampshire, and he has that other problem to deal with.

Suspensions kick in for Hamlin crew

This weekend Denny will have to change two key members of his pit crew as they begin two-race suspensions. Jack man Joel Bouagnon and front tire changer Austin Maloney were both penalized after Hamlin’s wheel became dislodged at Bristol recently.

Those penalties had been intended to start at New Hampshire, but JGR took the opportunity to defer them by one week. Bouagnon and Maloney will now miss Kansas this weekend and Charlotte on October 5.

They will be replaced by Front Row Motorsports pair Nate McBride (jack man) and Thomas Hatcher (front tire changer) . Both men are currently leased to Front Row by JGR.

The changes are clearly something Hamlin could have done without as he navigates what is likely a difficult week in the JGR shop.

Hamlin said after that on-track beef at the weekend he expected team leadership to “quarterback” how the team moves forward, and admitted he felt “wronged” by the incident.

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