NASCAR’s visit to Atlanta was deemed one of the best races in the 2026 season by many after it delivered a thrilling and dramatic finish to the race. However, Denny Hamlin believes there is room for improvement. 

While recapping the race on the podcast 'Actions Detrimental', Denny Hamlin spoke about the tire wear at the track and argued that the current tire compound should be revised to add more grip as the track continues to age. 

"Could we revamp that tire? More than likely. Just simply because if you like what you saw at the end of the race, in order to get that without it being either nighttime or cold, you need to add grip back in the tire."

Since the reconfiguration of EchoPark Speedway in 2022, it has produced drafting-style racing and photo finishes, drawing comparisons to old Daytona. During the 2026 race, the NASCAR Cup Series used a Goodyear Racing Eagle tire setup, which saw minimal tire wear. 

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver warned that failing to update the tire could eventually change the style of racing at Atlanta. 

"It's time. This track is aged enough to where they need to put some grip back in it if you want to see the tight style pack racing  that the fans come to love at the end of this... I think it just is time for a tire revamp at that place. Otherwise, you're going to lose the superspeedway aspect of it in due time."

For Hamlin, Atlanta’s current racing product remains one of NASCAR’s best. But he believes that a revised tire package will be necessary to ensure that the track produces the same type of racing product in the next visit. 

Denny Hamlin weighs in on Carson Hocevar’s race 

While recapping the Atlanta race in the aforementioned podcast, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver spoke about how Carson Hocevar received no support from his fellow drivers due to his reputation. 

Hamlin spoke about how tracks like these, which require drafting, always need help from fellow drivers. He said, 

“You can’t disrespect people on and off the track. That’s what Jeff Burton was saying so well. Dale Earnhardt was winning a lot of races, but he would at least come to you and say, ‘Man, I’m sorry about that.’ He made you believe you were friends, and he’d help you get over it. 

The No. 11 driver concluded that respect from peers is as important as getting clicks. 

“You don’t have to have a lot of friends, but you definitely can’t have a lot of enemies. There’s never been one of the greats in our sport who wasn’t respected by his peers. What’s good for clicks is not always what’s good for competition.”  

As rightly pointed out by Hamlin, earning respect among the drivers is also one of the important ingredients to success. 

Read more on the Daytona Racing Digest! 

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar