Watch: Denny Hamlin interrupts Chase Elliott's path to congratulate the HMS driver for The Clash win

Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott won his first-ever pole position for a pre-season exhibition race, and now he has parked his #9 Chevy Camaro ZL1 in the victory lane at the historic event held at Bowman Gray Stadium. However, this is not what surprised the fans, as Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin congratulating Elliott caught everyone off guard.

After winning the heat race on Saturday, the Dawsonville native dominated the majority of the 200-lap race. He led 171 laps in the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, including the final 200th lap, and took home the victory. Meanwhile, the oldest driver on the grid, Denny Hamlin, finished third at the event.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Dirty Mo Media shared a clip on its X account that surprised all the viewers. In the clip, while Elliott was heading into the pits Hamlin interrupted and congratulated Chase Elliott with a firm handshake.

The podcast team captioned the post:

"Denny Hamlin congratulates Chase Elliott after the race"

Here's the clip:

Chase Elliott did a phenomenal job and held off charges from Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney. Elliott led the first 96 laps before Denny Hamlin took the lead, and after a couple of early cautions, the #9 Chevy driver took the lead back from Hamlin.

Despite having a long history of feuds with the Hendrick Motorsports driver and being known for his fierce attitude, Denny Hamlin put up a display of good sportsmanship at the Clash.

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"I kind of had to teach myself": Chase Elliott's approach for The Clash at Bowman Gray stadium

Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott began the 2025 season with a stellar performance at the Bowman Gray Stadium. He won the first heat race, securing a pole position for the exhibition race that ultimately turned into a victory for the latter.

NASCAR returned to the Bowman Gray Stadium after a long hiatus of 54 years since 1971, and Elliott has a long history of racing on the track in his teenage days. Earlier, The Clash was held at the LA Coliseum for the past three seasons, and as per the HMS driver, Bowman Gray is much like the Coliseum.

Reflecting upon the similarities, Chase Elliott revealed the approach he entered the main event:

"I kind of had to re-teach myself, I guess, or get familiar again today this afternoon, and that was kind of how I approached the day and what I was expecting, and fortunately it was pretty similar to what I was thinking it was going to be based on the Coliseum and the differences visually what it looks like from that."

"That means we've been racing a lot," he added.

Later, in a post-race interview, the 29-year-old expressed his gratitude to his team and sponsors for putting out the hard work in building his car for the race.