RIDGEWAY, Va. – Let’s be honest, not every NASCAR driver gets the loudest applause before or after a race. Case in point Denny Hamlin. Despite the Virginia native winning at his home track, Richmond on Sunday, the boos weren’t hard to decipher after many thought he jumped the restart before winning over his teammate Martin Truex Jr.
But even with that Martinsville Speedway track President Clay Campbell sayS having a little angst in the sport isn’t bad at all.
“I think it’s good to have someone like that and I think Denny plays into that role quite well,” Campbell said.
“He knows what he’s doing and if he gets the fans riled up that’s fine. So it’s not a bad thing to have a villain so to speak and he likes doing it. So, I think it’s good. You have your good guys and then you have someone like Denny that like to stir it up when he wins. Fans love it. It’s not so vanilla for the fans. This is a good place for him and he may have something to say for the fans Sunday afternoon.”
So hate him or love him, Hamlin knows his way around a short track. Among active drivers, he has the most victories at Martinsville with 5. He’s eager to make it six by the end of this weekend.