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AVONDALE, ARIZONA – NOVEMBER 02: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Progressive Toyota, reacts after the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on November 02, 2025 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by James Gilbert\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Denny Hamlin is facing a wave of pushback after making sharp comments that upset many fans during the build-up to the December 1, 2025, antitrust trial between 23XI Racing<\/a>, Front Row Motorsports<\/a>, and NASCAR.<\/p>\n The 223XI co-owner reacted strongly to a recent ESPN report about the lawsuit, calling it a \u201cpropaganda piece\u201d and claiming NASCAR helped shape the message behind it. Hamlin also said fans had been \u201cbrainwashed\u201d by years of media coverage that he believes was influenced by NASCAR officials.<\/p>\n Those remarks set off days of reaction. Some fans accused him of attacking the people who support the sport, while others questioned his leadership as more court documents outlining team finances became public.<\/p>\n Denny Hamlin vs. McGee: How the Dispute Started<\/p>\n Ryan McGee\u2019s ESPN article<\/a>, \u201c23XI vs. NASCAR trial: Why Jordan wants to tear up stock car racing,\u201d breaks down the key arguments in the lawsuit. It explains the teams\u2019 claim that NASCAR holds too much control over charters, track access, and earnings from the $7.7 billion media deal. McGee reports that teams currently receive about 49% of that revenue.<\/p>\n Hamlin fired back on X, accusing McGee of letting NASCAR\u2019s senior vice president of communications, Mike Forde, shape the article. He said the piece pushed lies and that the full truth would come out in court.<\/p>\n \u201cPlease give credit to @mforde for helping you write this propaganda piece that they want pushed to switch the narrative. Continuous lies about our stance, NASCAR\u2019s motives for its actions, and a continued message from the sanctioning body that everything is fine. Our fans know better, he said.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n Fan Reaction: A Split Between Support and Pushback<\/p>\n Hamlin\u2019s remarks created a sharp divide among fans. Some felt he crossed a line, especially when he said parts of the fanbase had been \u201cbrainwashed.\u201d Many argued that criticism of NASCAR is fair, but attacking fans is not.<\/p>\n Chuck Nantz wrote<\/a>, \u201cMaybe calling the fans brainwashed isn\u2019t the best call. It\u2019s fine to have different opinions. No need to belittle the people who buy the tickets and support the sport.\u201d<\/p>\n Scott Shinbaum added<\/a>, \u201cWhy would @ESPNMcGee be intimidated by NASCAR? He doesn\u2019t have to see them every week, and his livelihood doesn\u2019t depend on being able to cover NASCAR anymore.\u201d He went on to say that McGee \u201chas never been afraid to be critical and honest.\u201d<\/p>\n Other fans pointed to their own experiences with media coverage. \u201cNot all of us have been brainwashed. I\u2019ve just been turned off by it. Used to love the SiriusXM 90 but it and its hosts became propaganda machines\u2026 fans with differing opinions aren\u2019t just dismissed, but are insulted and disrespected Willy Lee said<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n The Larger Tension: Court Records and Team Challenges<\/p>\n The responses grew stronger after fans highlighted details from unsealed court documents. Some comments focused on spending issues at 23XI and the costs of running a modern NASCAR team.<\/p>\n Michael Daly<\/a> wrote, \u201cYou and the other teams helped design the car. Creativity on the previous cars only created ever more team spending. Team spending is the real problem. We know your own people know you\u2019re an incompetent car owner who blows through money. Withdraw this suit.\u201d<\/p>\n But Hamlin also drew support from fans who believe the lawsuit is needed to change the sport\u2019s structure. BROskee posted<\/a>, \u201cThis isn\u2019t just a fight for 23XI, it\u2019s a fight for the fans who have seen this sport crumble before our eyes\u2026 Go get them, Denny.\u201d<\/p>\n As the trial approaches, the debate around Hamlin\u2019s comments and the lawsuit continues to grow, setting the stage for a major moment for NASCAR.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tDogli Wilberforce<\/a> is a sports writer who covers NASCAR, Formula 1 and IndyCar Series for Heavy Sports. With bylines at Total Apex Sports and Last Word on Sports, Wilberforce has built a reputation for delivering timely, engaging coverage that blends sharp analysis with accessible storytelling. Wilberforce has covered everything from major football transfers to fight-night drama, bringing readers the insight and context behind the headlines. More about Dogli Wilberforce<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on NASCAR\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Image AVONDALE, ARIZONA – NOVEMBER 02: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Progressive Toyota, reacts after the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":316524,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[446],"tags":[49,48,634,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-316523","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nascar","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-nascar","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/316524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}