When NASCAR penalised Bubba Wallace on Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Denny Hamlin—serving as both a driver for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 11 and co‑owner of 23XI Racing—said he understands the rationale behind the decision while leaving the immediate handling of the incident to team officials.
Hamlin acknowledged the dual nature of his role, noting that the responsibilities of driver and owner can sometimes conflict. He explained that the post‑penalty response was delegated to 23XI Performance Director Dave Rogers.
Speaking on Monday’s episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin said he understood why Wallace was immediately penalised, a ruling that dropped him from second to 29th place.
“When I watched the incident, I immediately thought it would incur a penalty because I’ve been penalised for the same manoeuvre before,” Hamlin remarked. “I understand the rule: it’s not about whether you actually gain a position, but about putting yourself in a position to do so. Does that make sense?”
“If NASCAR determines that a vehicle goes beneath the double painted lines to improve its position it will be black‑flagged. If NASCAR determines that a vehicle forces another vehicle beneath the double painted lines in an effort to advance its own position, the vehicle may be black‑flagged.” – NASCAR Rule Book Section 8.3.2
Hamlin stressed that the rule’s wording focuses on intent rather than outcome, noting that the verb “to” underscores the driver’s purpose to gain ground.
“It’s not about literally gaining ground; it’s about making a move with the intention to do so,” he explained. “The rule is very specific: the result is irrelevant, the intention is what counts. You must treat the yellow line as a wall, even though it’s not concrete. …
“That yellow line functions as a wall, albeit an invisible one. As soon as a driver steps outside the boundaries, it doesn’t matter whether an advantage was actually gained; the violation is still committed.”
Hamlin added that, while Wallace’s final position did not reflect a gain, “if you look at the middle of Turns 3 and 4, Bubba was the furthest out in front,” indicating he briefly assumed the lead.
In essence, Wallace briefly took the lead—an intentional manoeuvre that ultimately cost him 27 points in the Chase for the Championship seeding.
“He technically did gain the lead at some point during the move,” Hamlin continued. “That’s unfortunate because the loss was significant. With their speed, they should have been in the top three after falling back behind Ty Gibbs. They showed plenty of speed and aggression.”
Wallace defended the last‑lap push, saying, “Man, going for a win, I think you have to go for it.” He explained that drivers cannot see the lane markings from inside the car, particularly on Atlanta’s backstretch where the banking makes the apron and track surface blend, making it difficult to discern the line when closely behind other cars.