Denny Hamlin, Kenny Wallace swap Dale Earnhardt Sr. stories, relate it to Kyle Larson rivalry

Denny Hamlin and Kenny Wallace had an interesting conversation about Dale Earnhardt Sr. and how it relates to Hamlin’s rivalry with Kyle Larson. In Wallace’s interview with Hamlin, he told the story of his brother, Rusty Wallace, getting advice from Earnhardt after finishing a race in second place.

“Rusty is trying to win the Southern 500 and he’s got Bill Elliott right in front of him,” Kenny Wallace said. “Bill Elliott is just holding Rusty up. He can’t get by him. Rusty’s trying to pass him nice… Rusty just sawing the ass end of Bill Elliott’s car right off. Rusty runs second in the Darlington Southern 500.

“Well, Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Rusty get on an airplane. They fly up to the Minnesota State Fair. I’m running ASA, I got a car for Rusty and I’m racing. Earnhardt’s with him. Earnhardt looked at Rusty and says, ‘You know, all you had to do is pop him in the ass. Fans would have booed you, but they would have got over it and you’d have won the Southern 500.'”

Hamlin agreed with Earnhardt telling Rusty Wallace that fans would get over something like that. “I think social media has amplified people’s opinion,” he explained. “A lot of times, you can hide anonymously on social media. So you’re not afraid to really lash out when your favorite driver doesn’t win and he gets beat.”

Kenny Wallace and Denny Hamlin share more on Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Hamlin also said he agreed with Rusty Wallace for attempting “the art of passing” since it “doesn’t take much skill” to knock a driver out of the way. “I appreciate the art of trying to pass someone,” he stated. “Now eventually, things have changed in NASCAR now more than ever. People ain’t waiting behind you anymore. They’re just gonna knock you out of the way, knock you up the racetrack, move on. That’s the way Dale Earnhardt did it years and years and years ago.”

Kenny Wallace then asked Hamlin why Earnhardt got away with wrecking people and being a hero. “Because nobody was big enough and strong enough to challenge him outside the race car,” Hamlin said. “I think they were intimidated by him outside the race car. …He was intimidating on the racetrack and off the racetrack.”

Hamlin and Larson have been battling each other over the last few weeks, leading some to believe the two are in a feud. Hamlin recently said he and Larson race each other hard each week, which leads to them contacting each other.