The NASCAR NextGen car has become one of the sport’s most polarizing topics. While some drivers and analysts like Kenny Wallace strongly support the NextGen cars, many fans and competitors remain skeptical. The divide isn’t just about personal preference – it cuts to the heart of what makes for compelling racing.
Denny Hamlin has emerged as one of the most vocal critics, pushing back against those who dismiss fan concerns as unrealistic expectations. His argument is simple: much of the criticism surrounding the NextGen cars is completely valid.
Why Does Denny Hamlin Believe Fan Criticism Is Justified?
Remember the excitement when NASCAR unveiled the NextGen car? 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott captured the mood perfectly at the May 2021 reveal ceremony.
“After so long talking about it and working on it, it’s a little surreal to see it actually sitting there, isn’t it? This is a racy-looking car. Now let’s hope it races as good as it looks,” Elliott said back then.
Elliott wasn’t alone in his optimism. The NextGen car looked revolutionary – sleek design, advanced technology, and a promise to level the playing field between manufacturers. Fast forward several seasons, and that early enthusiasm has given way to frustration for many.
The car simply hasn’t delivered the racing product many expected. Drivers and fans alike point to fundamental design flaws that make it difficult to produce the kind of competitive action NASCAR promised.
Hamlin has consistently criticized the NextGen car and believes fans are getting unfairly attacked for raising legitimate concerns. While discussing his performance at Iowa, he highlighted a core problem that plagued him throughout the race.
“You can make passes if you’re in the middle of the pack when everyone has disturbed air. It’s just challenging the leader in this car, is such a tough ask, because the leader has such an advantage,” the NASCAR veteran explained.
What Makes Passing So Difficult in NextGen Cars?
The numbers tell a troubling story. Hamlin broke down the speed differential, revealing why overtaking has become nearly impossible, especially for leaders trying to work through traffic.
“If you look at the times, the difference between the first place, the fastest race car on the racetrack, and the 30th place speed car is 3.10. We talked about at Indy where you had to be 1.2 seconds faster than someone to actually overtake them,” he said.
“The number at Iowa, I don’t know, I think it probably is at least 3.10. So, that’s why you saw when the leader catches the 30th place car, he can’t, it just takes him forever to work them over because there’s not enough difference in speed from that car to that car.”
This creates a mathematical nightmare for racing. When the performance gap between the fastest and slowest cars is minimal, but you need a massive speed advantage actually to complete a pass, you get precisely what fans have been complaining about: processional racing where track position becomes everything.
Hamlin also attacked Iowa’s tire compound choice, arguing that Goodyear’s decision made the racing even worse.
“And then when you look at the course of the run, I sent Dale Jr. a screenshot of this on Saturday night, I said, ‘Can you believe that we tire tested here?’ Not we, the 11 car, but NASCAR and Goodyear tire tested here, and this is the tire that they came up with, is the one that zero fall-off after 50 laps,” he said.
“How on the world do you expect us to put on a good race when everyone’s going to run the same speed, and they’re gonna run the same speed from the beginning of the run to the end of the run?”
The lack of tire degradation removes one of racing’s most important variables. Without tires wearing down at different rates, strategy becomes limited and speed differentials disappear even further.
But Hamlin’s most pointed criticism targeted those who dismiss fan complaints as unreasonable negativity.
“I think that some of the fans are really getting labeled as just people that are negative all the time by the NASCAR shields, and that’s just not true. They’re regurgitating what we are saying, and it’s just incredibly difficult out there.”
His message is clear: fans aren’t being unrealistic or overly critical. They’re simply echoing what drivers experience every weekend. When the competitors themselves are struggling with the car’s limitations, fan frustration becomes completely understandable.