Denny Hamlin: The Clash returning to Bowman Gray Stadium will be a 'sh**show'

With NASCAR’s three-year contract with The Coliseum in Los Angeles expiring ahead of next season’s version of The Clash, rumors are swirling that Bowman Gray Stadium will host the event in 2025.

The track, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is one of NASCAR’s legendary venues, but the possibility has drawn mixed reviews from drivers and media members alike, including Denny Hamlin. The No. 11 wheelman spoke on the matter earlier last month, via an episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast.

“I don’t know what to think of it,” Hamlin responded, pressed about the possibility. “I mean, the track — it’s probably going to be about the same size as The Coliseum. I mean, it’s probably — I mean, maybe even bigger actually, than The Coliseum. I mean, we know it’ll be a s— show, for sure. We’re all just going to knock each other out of the way and whatnot.”

While Hamlin doesn’t believe the racing would be an issue, the fact that NASCAR would be leaving an untapped market, and the potential freezing temperatures in North Carolina in February are giving the NASCAR veteran some pause.

“Obviously, my concern is more like the temperature,” Hamlin added. “It’s going to be absolutely freezing if you have it preseason up there. But there’s not that many seats to sell. I mean, when you think about it, it doesn’t hold much. … I’m going to guess 15,000 seats, at Bowman Gray. So, I mean I’m kind of indifferent. … it’s not like this is a big market for us. LA was at least a market, and it was, it had new fans. When you looked at the fans, you would say, ‘It’s not your typical NASCAR fan.’ A lot of these folks that were buying tickets for The Coliseum, it was the first time they were going to a NASCAR race.

“My guess is, when we go to Bowman Gray, it’ll be more like 100% had been to a NASCAR race. I think it’s deep-rooted in our fanbase, for sure. So I don’t think we’ll have any issue there, but as far as growing our sport, I have my doubts, on that.”

Alas, it remains to be seen what NASCAR does about The Clash in 2025, but Denny Hamlin makes some salient points. We’ll see if the governing body decides to lock in Bowman Gray Stadium, or if the Cup Series looks for a different market to bring their wealth of talent to next season.