"I'm concerned about that" - Denny Hamlin's lack of consistency worries former NASCAR driver

41-year-old NASCAR veteran Denny Hamlin has retired from three out of five races in the 2022 season so far.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver, who is known for his consistency and ability to retain momentum, has done the opposite this year. Hamlin currently sits in 26th position on the points table after the race in Atlanta.

Kyle Petty, son of the legendary Richard Petty, was raised around racing culture. After a Cup Series career that spanned almost 29 years, Petty is surely one of the most experienced people in the NASCAR fraternity.

The 61-year-old recently spoke about Hamlin on the NASCAR on NBC Podcast. He believes Denny Hamlin's struggles come down to two factors, which are the introduction of new cars and an influx of younger talent into the sport.

Basically, NASCAR in 2022 is a place where the playing field is leveled to such an extent that nobody knows what to expect anymore.

The nature of the game has changed, according to Petty. Veterans such as Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick have been able to adapt to the newer style of racing that the cars bring with them, whereas Hamlin has not.

Petty also believes that Hamlin might not be able to get back to his usual consistent self if he waits any longer, stating:

“If this was last year, I would say no panic, no concern. But I really expected after five or six races this year to see it kind of sort out where there’s my man Kevin Harvick pairs, my man Denny Hamlin, there’s my man Kyle Busch … (and) the world is right again. I haven’t seen that. Denny’s going to knock it out of the park somewhere, But just to find that consistency, I’m concerned about that.”

Listen to the podcast below:

NASCAR heads to Austin, Texas this weekend for the EchoPark Automotive Texas Grand Prix. We might just see Hamlin fighting for position in the play-offs this season at the Circuit of the Americas.

Denny Hamlin reacts to Hendrick Motorsports' LeMans entry

Hendrick Motorsports' recent announcement of their plans to pursue their Garage 56 entry to LeMans in 2023 has caught Denny Hamlin's attention.

The NASCAR Cup Series driver and co-owner of the 23XI Racing team retweeted a tweet from NASCAR's official handle on the topic, saying:

"Well this is quite let’s just say, interesting…"

The move by Rick Hendrick and his team has stirred up quite a lot of interest in the NASCAR fraternity.