“Dale Jr. and Dale Earnhardt would have never survived”: Denny Hamlin makes bold claim amid NASCAR’s existing superspeedway package 

NASCAR Cup Series regular Denny Hamlin thinks that if Dale Earnhardt Jr., or even the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. were to run NASCAR’s existing superspeedway package, it would result in a disaster. The Earnhardts, said Hamlin, would never "survive" the mayhem.

NASCAR’s superspeedway package is a set of rules and specifications including target engine output, and rear spoiler size for point races held annually at Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, and Atlanta Motor Speedway. Intended to prioritize safety, the package was introduced in 2022 following a 10-lap run at Daytona and an exclusive Goodyear tire test at Atlanta.

This means that things aren’t the way they used to be when the legendary Dale Earnhardt and his Hall of Famer son were full-time drivers in NASCAR. Reflecting on the same in a recent episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin explained,

“Dale Jr. and Dale Earnhardt would have never survived in today's Superspeedway racing. Wouldn't have done it. They wouldn't have been as successful because of how superspeedway racing happens today. But then to be told who you can and can't draft with... it's nonsense but it's the world we live in.”

What the veteran Joe Gibbs Racing driver meant is that Dale Sr. and Dale Jr. would “hate” today’s style of drafting and thus wouldn’t be as successful in their respective careers.

“I’m basically saying they would HATE today’s style of drafting and would not be as successful as they were,” Denny Hamlin further explained through a comment.

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Denny Hamlin takes a blatant jibe at NASCAR’s Open Exemption Provisional

NASCAR recently introduced its Open Exemption Provisional that will allow a driver of international repute to run the 41st entry in the upcoming Daytona 500, given that they fail to qualify straight up. As per reports, this year, the provisional will be granted to four-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves.

Denny Hamlin isn’t really fond of this new rule. During an interview with FOX, he touched on the matter, saying,

“Yeah, I don’t necessarily think that if someone can’t make it on speed… You should definitely have to earn your way in, especially when you’ve got some multi-time champions of our sport not being locked in. But someone with a resume from somewhere else has an opportunity to lock in? I’m not really sure that’s fair.”

Whether it's fair is debatable, but the Open Exemption Provisional will guarantee Castroneves a starting spot, while potentially excluding NASCAR legends like Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, who are also expected to make one-off appearances in the crown jewel event.

The 500-mile race is scheduled for Sunday, February 16. Fans can watch the action unfold on FOX from 2:30 pm ET onwards or listen to live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.