Denny Hamlin reveals his pick for companion to be deserted on an island 

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin took a cheeky dig at Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by choosing him as his company while stranded on a deserted island. The pick came during Hamlin's 'Ask me Anything' segment on Instagram, where he attached an image of the former Xfinity Series champion's scuffle with Kyle Busch.

During the 2024 All-Star race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, Stenhouse Jr. race ended prematurely after Busch tagged his rear during the second round. After the race, Stenhouse Jr. had a heated confrontation with Busch and even proceeded to punch the two-time NASCAR Cup champion.

In an Instagram story, Hamlin responded to a fan's question about his pick for a companion on a deserted island. The Joe Gibbs driver shared an image of Stenhouse Jr.'s altercation with Busch and dropped a hilarious jab, writing:

"@stenhousejr"

Denny Hamlin's IG story on Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Source : @Instagram/dennyhamlin

NASCAR issued severe penalties for Stenhouse Jr., slapping him with a $75,000 fine. Additionally, two of his crew members were given multi-race suspensions while his father, Ricky Stenhouse Sr., was placed under indefinite suspension for his role in the close-quarters combat.

---

Denny Hamlin changes his Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway stance after backlash from NASCAR fans

Denny Hamlin recently walked back his comments on the racing quality during the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. The half-mile concrete bore witness to a dominant win by Kyle Larson after leading for 411 of 500 laps. With low tire-falloff making passing difficult, the race saw minimal lead changes and fewer pit stops.

During the post-race interview, Denny Hamlin urged fans not to drag the racing just because someone dominated. He ended up getting flak for his comments and decided to address it on his podcast, Actions Detrimental.

"You got to realize, fans ... I am in a cocoon for those 500 laps. All I know is my experience. Now, when I went back and watched the race, I hear you, I get what you're saying. ... I know (the race) wasn't good, and I feel your pain. We're trying to do our best on this show to get someone in NASCAR to listen to us to make some of these changes," Denny Hamlin said.(43:55 onwards)

"And I wish they would call me and say, 'What would you do?' Because there's about six things that I think we could do to truly make it better, and it have no adverse side effects to it. But you know, this is part of a bigger business plan for them that we we're not prefaced to, and we just don't know," he added.

Denny Hamlin lost out on a third consecutive win at Bristol and settled for a runner-up spot. He lines up in 13th for Sunday's race at Talladega Superspeedway, three spots ahead of his championship rival William Byron. The No.11 driver sits 30 points behind Byron in the Driver standings and looks poised to take the lead at the 188-lap event.