Denny Hamlin recalls 'sketchy' lap at Chicago in pouring rain: 'I couldn't see anything'

NASCAR is looking to improve their ability to race in the rain, but Mother Nature made it tough on Denny Hamlin and the entire Cup Series in Chicago.

While NASCAR was able to get some laps in while rain was falling during the Grant Park 165, one of the final laps before they finally red-flagged the race saw the skies open up and a downpour begin. During the latest episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin elaborated on the visibility from his point of view at that time.

“That was sketchy,” Hamlin said, regarding not being able to see due to the immense rain. “That one lap that we ran, that it was in full rain and the track was soaked, that was too much. It was spraying. Good rule of thumb is that NASCAR can use the camera at the end of the front straightaway. If it can only spot two cars, then it’s too wet. It’s too wet.

“So, what happens is, none of us could see nothing. I couldn’t see where the corner was. I couldn’t see anything. All I saw was blinking red lights, and I’m hoping those blinking red lights are going the right direction, and they’re following someone else’s blinking red light. So it’s just — that was definitely too much, and it looks like the rule of thumb is, if there’s puddles on the track, literal puddles, it’s too much. You can’t do it, because the spray is just, it’s blinding.”

Moreover, visibility came into question again, when NASCAR decided to end the race due to darkness at 8:20 p.m. CT. While Hamlin believes they could’ve run a couple more laps, he explained that NASCAR made the right call in the end.

“It’s just, the visibility is tough, especially at a street course like Chicago, there’s just no room for error. There’s no run-off, like you would see at other tracks,” Hamlin added, regarding whether NASCAR should’ve let the race go for a couple more laps. “Yeah, it’s just — what would happen is, the darker it gets, the more pronounced the strobe lights would be, which actually, they had us turn them off towards the end of the race, because they are pretty blinding in normal conditions. So, I think that, it’s just not possible.

“You know, I looked, I had a good view from my hotel, kind of of the straightaway, from Turn 6 to Turn 7 there, and yeah, there were some orange street lights, there was. That’s just not enough. It’s not enough to run. So yeah, it’s unfortunate. … We probably could’ve gone a few laps longer, but NASCAR — you know, it’s better to set a time, from the beginning, to let everyone know, ‘This is what we’re up against, this time right here,’ so I think that was the right call. It was what they intended. They made sure they made it very aware to all the crew chiefs.”

NASCAR is still learning how to combat the elements, and it’s a shame they’ve plagued the Chicago Street Race for back-to-back seasons now. Perhaps next season the sun will shine in the Windy City, and Denny Hamlin will be able to be a factor at the end of the race.