Denny Hamlin says NASCAR should ditch controversial racetrack

The much-maligned NASCAR Cup Series playoffs did deliver some high drama in Charlotte on Sunday, just not enough.

That is the verdict of superstar driver Denny Hamlin, who believes it is time for the sport to move on from the Roval road course track which staged the Round of 12 elimination race in 2025.

The 44-year-old Hamlin, for the third consecutive week, was at the center of the race’s biggest talking point. That came on the very last lap when he (unwittingly) passed Ross Chastain, to send three-time champion Joey Logano through to the next stage.

While that might be nice as an edited highlight, Hamlin believes the rest of the day was pretty uninspiring stuff, as road course bully Shane van Gisbergen again dominated for an easy win.

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Denny Hamlin on the Roval

Denny spoke in depth about the Roval in his Actions Detrimental podcast, and his verdict was damning. He responded when co-host Jared Allen talked about that late excitement.

“But you were tuned in. Do you think people tune in halfway through that race, look at that thing and say ‘well this is more compelling than the football I just turned off?’

Hamlin has been very vocal in his belief that starting races during a Sunday afternoon window where the NFL dominates TV audiences is a bad move. He says this was a prime example.

“I think that [The Athletic insider] Jeff Gluck on the Teardown had a great point. He said when he turned off football - he was watching the Broncos playing the 1pm game - he’s like ‘man, you gotta be a diehard, hardcore fan at this time of the day to then go say I’m gonna go watch the Roval. Where you basically know what the outcome is’.

“To Jeff Gluck’s point, you really have to be dedicated, this is your number one priority, if you’re gonna tune in and watch the Roval. And I agree if this is only oval, can you tell me who’s gonna win on the oval? I don’t think so. The 600 was wildly entertaining - the mile and a half product with this car is amazing.”

Why not the oval?

So why was this race on the Roval? And not the oval in Charlotte? Hamlin has a theory about that too.

“I’m fairly certain that it is on the schedule because it’s SMI’s date [Speed Motorsport Inc operates the track]. They own that date, it is a playoff race. SMI doesn’t own any other road courses and they [NASCAR] want a road course to be in the playoffs. A road course, I don’t think they care what, when or how.

“NASCAR wants a road course in the playoffs.”

Hamlin spoke openly about the quality of the racing on Sunday, and his firm belief that moving to the oval would be the right one.

“The racing is not memorable. I think where you’re needing to keep people’s focus, it is really gonna be hard to keep focus on a race where we just had the three favourites all win this by a mile. It just wasn’t close.

“As a fan, and I am a fan, it’s a lot to ask. And I believe that the right decision is to put us on the oval. You’ll get the most out of your product if you do that. You’ve just got to make some compromises down the road.”

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