Denny Hamlin reacts to Fox broadcast issues with crowd noise at Bowman Gray Stadium

The NASCAR season unofficially got off to a scintillating start on Sunday when drivers competed at the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray. Things went just about as smoothly as they could have.

Just about.

There was one hiccup in the weekend’s action that caught the eye — or rather the ear — of many viewers back home. The ambient audio from Bowman Gray Stadium was virtually non-existent.

“The crowd didn’t overcome the car noise,” Denny Hamlin explained. “They just had a microphone somewhere near the crowd and they turned it on.”

The hiccup was noticeable, particularly when the announcers were talking up the crowd for being extremely enthusiastic. That simply didn’t carry over to the broadcast because of the microphone placement.

Still, that’s a relatively minor complaint on a weekend that was otherwise hailed as a huge success at Bowman Gray. Ratings were up and drivers were happy to get back into the swing of things.

“I think overall TV did a good job,” Hamlin said on his Actions Detrimental podcast. “The convenient thing about driving is I was able to then watch it right back on my way home. I thought everything was good. Except for I have one major, major beef with FOX. Major beef.”

Denny Hamlin has post-Bowman Gray request

So what did Denny Hamlin want to see happen that didn’t occur on Sunday? Well, it’s a rather self-serving bit, as Hamlin hilariously relayed on his podcast.

“I was so excited, actually excited to go to the production day this year,” Hamlin said. “You know what, I’m finally going to lose the buzz cut. Because whatever you look like on January 15 is what you look like for the entire year. So when I had that little clipper mishap last year I had to live with a buzz cut the entire year.”

Hamlin wasn’t a huge fan of the look and was all too happy to get it changed. So needless to say he was quite disappointed when he tuned into the broadcast after the race at Bowman Gray.

“They haven’t changed it. They haven’t changed it,” he said, seemingly stunned. “Give me my hair back, FOX. I’ve got new photos. I’ve got a Sport Clips car. Got to show it off, and hurry up before it gets gray.”