"If they don't do it, it’s their fault": When Rick Hendrick defended the dominance of Hendrick Motorsports in NASCAR

There's never been a team as dominant in NASCAR as Hendrick Motorsports. The Rick Hendrick-owned outfit has amassed 312 Cup Series victories and 14 Cup Series championships, the most of all time in both categories.

Ahead of the 2015 season, the famed car owner was quoted in the New York Times defending his team's dominance over the years. At that point, a HMS car or driver had won eight of the last nine championships. Kevin Harvick, who drove for Stewart-Haas Racing, won the championship in 2014 with HMS-built chassis and engines.

The article, written by NY Times author Viv Bernstein, suggested whether or not there was a "competitive imbalance" amid Hendrick's dominance. Kyle Petty, a former driver, current NASCAR on NBC broadcaster, and son of seven-time champion Richard Petty, was quoted saying that's always been the case in NASCAR, but nothing compared to what HMS has done.

“I think there’s always been a competitive imbalance in the sport,” Petty said. “But the dominance that Hendrick has shown, honestly, for the last 20 years solidly, I don’t think any team, even including Petty Enterprises, has been as dominant as what they’ve been all the way around.”

The article went on to point out that Hendrick fielded four full-time Cup Series cars, the maximum amount, driven by, at the time, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kasey Kahne. HMS also supplied teams such as SHR, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, and HScott Motorsports, which combined for eight full-time Cup Series.

HMS essentially owned 12 of the 43 Cup Series teams heading into 2015. However, Rick Hendrick defended his reach in the Cup Series garage and pointed out that when Toyota came to NASCAR, the manufacturer agreed to have all their teams work together.

Hendrick said every owner in the sport has the same chance to do what he did, and if they don't act on it, it's not his problem.

“Other guys have the opportunity,” Rick Hendrick said. “If they don’t do it, it’s their fault.”

Continuing its decade-old tradition, Hendrick Motorsports will continue to field four cars in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Rick Hendrick's HMS continues to field four cars in the Cup Series

Rick Hendrick (L) with legendary driver and vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, Jeff Gordon - Source: Imagn

While things have certainly changed within the walls of Hendrick Motorsports since 2015, one constant has been the number of cars Rick Hendrick's side fields. HMS continues to enter four full-time cars into every NASCAR Cup Series race, including this upcoming season.

Kyle Larson pilots the #5 HMS Chevrolet and will be coming off six wins in 2024. He won the championship in 2021 for HMS after scoring 10 victories in the campaign. Chase Elliott wheels the #9 HMS Chevrolet and is fresh off one win in 2024, which snapped a 42-race losing streak for the Georgia driver. He won the 2020 championship after winning five races that year.

Alex Bowman returns to the #48 HMS Chevrolet after winning one race in 2024. William Byron, meanwhile, is back behind the wheel of the #24 car for 2025 after three wins in 2024.