"Dover loves Denny" - Denny Hamlin's hilarious take on thumbs-down by NASCAR fans

Denny Hamlin is one of the most recognizable faces in NASCAR. The 41-year-old veteran has had a storied career in various forms of stock car racing and has over 18 years of experience.

Hamlin got off to a slow start in 2022 with the new Next Gen cars proving a little difficult to get used to for the Tampa, Florida native.

However, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver put in the work and managed to boost team morale with his first win of the 2022 season at the Toyota Owners 400 held at Richmond Raceway.

The win came about after Hamlin survived 400-miles of racing at the Richmond, Virginia track to hopefully cement his position in the 2022 playoffs.

The NASCAR circus is at Dover Motor Speedway where the DuraMAX Drydene 400 was supposed to crown a winner yesterday, but the rain forced the race to be postponed. The race is now scheduled to run today at 12 p.m. EST on FS1.

Denny took the opportunity to post a picture from the pre-race driver's introduction in Dover, Delaware, where he's being given a thumbs down. Instead of being negative about the gesture, he joked about it on Twitter and wrote:

"Dover loves Denny"

See the tweet below:

Along with racing for Joe Gibbs racing full time in the NASCAR Cup Series, Denny Hamlin also co-owns 23XI Racing with basketball legend Michael Jordan. Bubba Wallace Jr. and Kurt Busch drive for the Mooresville, North Carolina-based outfit.

Fans react to Denny Hamlin's hilarious "Dover loves Denny" tweet

Fans were quick to respond to Denny Hamlin's tweet, where he was seen on stage at Dover Motor Speedway during the pre-race driver's introduction. A fan was seen giving Denny the thumbs-down, to which Hamlin jokingly replied, "Dover loves Denny."

One person spoke about how being in the limelight causes people to overlook the positives about a person and wrote:

"I think being a public figure..people start to remember the bad and forget the good. So lets forget about the bad. The good…Denny… amazing NASCAR drivers..gives back…my favourite…I saw him reply to a fan in sign language who couldn’t hear…amazing!"

See the tweet below:

Another person thanked Hamlin for signing his 23XI Racing merchandise and wrote:

"Thanks for showing up and being great! Thanks for signing my 23XI merch. My son would've loved to have been there but unfortunately he is battling cancer. Lord willin after his battle He'll get to be with me next time. Thanks for the hospitality!, much love! Keep digging!"

See the tweet below:

Denny Hamlin ran up front in the DuraMAX Drydene 400 on Sunday and had built a lead on the field when rain showers forced the race to be red flagged. He will be looking to go flat out for the rescheduled race today at 12 p.m. EST on FS1.