$65M-worth Denny Hamlin fires two-word strong verdict in ode to controversial Martinsville Xfinity finish

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin shared his verdict on the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway. The 44-year-old shared a two-word verdict in a tweet uploaded on March 29, 2025.

The 0.526-mile-long Martinsville Speedway lived up to its reputation and hosted a chaotic NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Given the nature of the oval with its short track length and the sharp turns, multiple cautions, crashes, and bumping are the norm around the track. The Xfinity race was no different with 14 cautions during the 250 lap race.

$65 Million worth Denny Hamlin came out and called out the dirty racing at the Martinsville Speedway as his tweet read,

“Absolutely Garbage”

Hamlin continued to express his race at the driver bumping and causing crashes as he again tweeted,

“Martinsville is a track that could use a “avoidable contact” penalty.”

A few minutes later, the JGR driver again took to social media platform X, as Hamlin’s tweet read,

“God I wish I were in the booth. I'd get fired but I damn sure would call these idiots out.”

The final few laps at Martinsville were pure chaos with #8 Chevrolet of Sammy Smith bumping the race leader Taylor Gray on the penultimate lap coming out of the final corner. However, soon a caution came out for an incident further behind on the track and the race went into overtime.

#54 Toyota of Gray then gave Smith a taste of his own medicine by giving him the lightest of bumps, pushing the #8 to take the high line and sneak on his inside to take the lead. Coming towards the chequered flag, Smith made a Hail Mary move and bumped Gray once again, causing an almighty pile-up on the final turn, which allowed Austin Hill to pass through and win the race.

Kevin Harvick predicts Denny Hamlin to win at Martinsville Speedway

Denny Hamlin ranks 3rd when it comes to drivers with the best average finish at Martinsville Speedway, with only Ryan Blaney and Jimmie Johnson having better averages than him. Kevin Harvick, on the Happy Hour podcast, predicted Hamlin to win the Cup series race at Martinsville, based on his former record and his recent form in the series. He said,

“King of Martinsville, you know that that's Denny Hamlin. It seems that they've kind of found their groove, steady and consistent, leading some laps, won a stage just last weekend, got a sponsor on the side of the car. All that noise, it just keeps getting quieter and quieter for Denny Hamlin because he just keeps putting himself in a position to perform well.” (36:26 onwards)

“That's what he's been able to do throughout the year. So this could be a big Hamlin weekend," he added.

Denny Hamlin will start the race in P5 in his #11 JGR Toyota. His teammate Christopher Bell will start in pole position at Martinsville.