NASCAR has informed Denny Hamlin that he must start sensitivity training by the end of this week after posting a tweet on Monday that makes light of a racial stereotype. The tweet was an attempt by Hamlin to make fun of a move Kyle Larson made on the final lap of last week's race at Talladega Superspeedway.
Entering the tri-oval coming to the checkered flag at Talladega, Larson abruptly cut to the outside in an attempt to pass race leader Erik Jones without being clear of Kurt Busch, triggering a crash that wrecked both of the 23XI Racing cars that Hamlin owns. A day after the race, Hamlin rebuked Larson's driving by sharing a video that included a clip from the animated TV sitcom "Family Guy" immediately followed by the crash.
In the clip, Larson's name was labeled over a cutaway gag in which an Asian woman loudly declares that she is going to cut across multiple lanes of traffic without using her turn signal. Hamlin's use of that gag had racial implications, as Larson is half-Japanese.
I took down a post I made earlier today after reading some of the comments. It was a poor choice of memes and I saw how it was offensive. It came across totally wrong. I apologize.
— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) April 26, 2022
Hamlin's social media faux pas ran afoul of the NASCAR rulebook, which states that NASCAR members "shall not make or cause to be made a public statement and/or communication that criticizes, ridicules, or otherwise disparages another person based upon that person's race, color, creed, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, martial status, religion, age, or handicapping condition."
Hamlin is the second Joe Gibbs Racing driver since last October to receive a sensitivity training summons for comments made about another driver. Following a race at Martinsville Speedway last fall, Kyle Busch was ordered to take sensitivity training after using a term that disparages the mentally disabled to describe Brad Keselowski's driving in the final laps.
