WATCH: Drivers view of what happened between Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin at Pocono

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin earned his second win of the season at Pocono Raceway and yet again, it came at the expense of Kyle Larson. The two drivers were involved in a heated battle on the track, which transformed into a war of words once out of their cars.

Denny Hamlin's first victory of the season came at Kansas, where he and Larson were involved in an intense battle for the win on the final lap. The #5 Hendrick Motorsports driver hit the barriers in Kansas, while a similar story unfolded in Pocono Raceway.

With seven laps to go for the checkered flag in the HighPoint.com 400, Kyle Larson led the field to green with Denny Hamlin behind him. The two drivers on the outside lane got a huge push from behind as Hamlin cut down to take the inside lane.

As the #11 and the #5 cars raced side by side, Hamlin shoved Larson into the barriers on Lap 154. A brief moment of contact between the two meant the #5 Chevy brushed the barriers, immediately losing momentum.

Kyle Larson was fuming after the race as the incident dropped him down the order to 20th. What could have been a possible win or a top 2 finish, ended in a disastrous manner for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion. He also retaliated on track, bumping into Hamlin's #11 Toyota under caution.

The #5 Hendrick Motorsports driver was frustrated with the incident as he felt Hamlin had to leave more space. While Larson claimed that it was the contact that sent him into the barrier, Hamlin reckoned he never made contact.

Video footage from Kevin Harvick's #4 Ford, from the second row, suggests that the two front-runners did come together for a brief moment.

The incident and its aftermath have left a sour taste for Larson and the spectators, who booed the eventual race winner.

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Kyle Larson admits such racing incidents make things "shitty and awkward" between friends

Kyle Larson

Despite coming together in Kansas, Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin were on good terms with each other. But Larson believes that the latest incident at Pocono Raceway has tarnished their friendship.

"Yeah, we’re friends. Yes, this makes things shitty and awkward. Whatever. He’s always right," Larson said to the media post-race. "All the buddies know Denny is always right. I’m sure he was in the right there as well. It is what it is. I’m not going to let it tarnish a friendship on the track, but I am pissed. And I feel like I should be pissed."

Learning his lessons from the race, Larson later admitted on his podcast High Limit Room that he would race Denny Hamlin differently from now onwards.