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Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch are the greatest drivers of all time and are the best on the grid. Both drivers have won several races together and supported each other when they were teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing.
Despite being teammates for a long time, Busch and Hamlin have become close in the last couple of years on different teams.
On “Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour," Denny Hamlin reflected on his relationship with two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch and how it has changed since he left JGR for RCR last year.
“My respect for Kyle is pretty high. I really have a ton of respect for Kyle, I almost envision our relationship very similar to mine and Tony Stewart’s where we actually became better friends when we were not teammates.
"I think when we were teammates it was too much of competition,” Hamlin said, as quoted by On3.com.
In motorsports, the competition between teammates can sometimes overshadow the potential of true friendship, but when the competition pressure fades, the foundation for a deeper bond emerges.
“He’s just such a gifted driver” – Denny Hamlin on Kyle Busch
The three-time Daytona 500 winner also reflected on his early experiences with Kyle Busch in the podcast, recalling a test session at Atlanta Motor Speedway where their competitive spirits ignited a friendly yet intense rivalry.
Despite the competition, Hamlin admires Busch’s talent and ability to extract maximum performance from any racing equipment. Recalling a competitive session between him and Busch, Hamlin said:
“I’ll never forget the first test that Kyle came over and we were at Atlanta. We kept one-upping each other every time we’d go out, we’d keep making each other go faster. And Kyle is like, ‘Yeah I really wanted to set the barometer of like, let you know I’m the man here now.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, really?’”
“It was always a friendly competition but also a fierce competition between us, but I just respect the hell out of his talent. He’s just such a gifted driver and he always gets the best out of any equipment that he’s been in.”
Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch have been competing in NASCAR for the last two decades. The two are the active wins leaders in the Cup Series, with Hamlin winning 52 races and Busch 63.
Catch both drivers in action at Richmond Raceway on Sunday at 7 pm ET.
