"I was just pointing to the cars below me" - Denny Hamlin admits giving Joey Logano the bird during Daytona 500

Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Toyota Camry TRD for Joe Gibbs Racing, confesses to giving Joey Logano the bird during the Daytona 500 pit stop.

Following the completion of Stage 1, the majority of the field went to the pit road to acquire new tires and fuel. When the cars departed the pits, Hamlin was slightly ahead of Logano, who continued down the pit road on the outside of Hamlin's door.

Todd Gilliland would emerge from his stall and put Denny Hamlin and Logano three wide. Hamlin pushed Logano a little onto the grass to avoid Gilliland.

Logano then returned to the pit lane as Hamlin made a place for him. That opening, though, would be shortly filled when Eric Jones left his stall and made it four-wide.

Denny Hamlin slid to the outside of the pit lane once again, colliding with Logano. The latter didn't like being forced outside and swiftly slipped in behind Hamlin and knocked him up a little.

During this incident, Hamlin was shown extending his hand out the window, perhaps giving Logano the bird, but it was unclear what motion he was making. Meanwhile, Logano was seen questioningly raising his hand in their direction.

During an appearance on Dale Earnhardt Jr's Dirty Mo Media's Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny Hamlin described the event. He admitted to giving Logano the bird.

“At the end of the first stage, it wasn’t a little tame because me and Joey had a little thing on pit road. So it’s my job, right, to make sure that, you know, I try to keep my wheels straight, go down pit road, and make sure I’m aware — and the spotter always makes you aware when someone’s on the inside or the outside of you.”

"Well, I come off of — I accelerate, I get to pit road speed and I’m on the outside of — I pull out of the pit stall and I’m halfway down and I’m on the outside of someone, I think it might have been Gilliland, it was another Ford,” he relayed. “But then Joey, he always picks the very end on pit road at Daytona because he likes to come in hot, get to his stall, then get down to business, and accelerate.”

Hamlin continued his narration and explained how he ended up losing his cool.

“Well, he was just barely on my right rear corner. I’m being respectful, know he’s there. Clearly, he knows I’m no dumba**. I know he’s there. So I’m giving him room, but then somebody comes out, leaves their pit stall, and squeezes Gilliland,” Hamlin explained. “Gilliland pushes me up and I’m literally grinding the side of my car against Gilliland because I know Joey is on the outside of me, so I’m trying to be a nice guy and not run him completely into the grass.”

He further said:

“But I guess he — I got nearly run in the grass, so he probably dipped a tire in the grass. And he came off pit road and he gave me the bumper and was shoving me. And I was like, ‘F*** you, pal. How do you not know that we’re four-wide here?'”

When asked if he flipped Logano the bird after just confessing to doing so, Denny Hamlin downplayed it.

“Well, I was just pointing to the cars below me. I pointed to those cars that it’s their fault, not mine. But it was good.”

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Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano have a small history of colliding in the pit lane

During the 2023 Daytona 500, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano had a small pit lane incident. This isn't the first time these two have collided, though.

Infamously, the two collided at Martinsville in 2019 and Hamlin ended up on his backside after being shoved by Logano.

Back in 2013 also, they crashed into each other while fighting for the lead on the last lap in California. Kyle Busch eventually won the race.