Andrew Ravens Tue, October 27, 2026 at 11:53 PM UTC · 3 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Chase Briscoe has explained why he left Denny Hamlin behind in the draft at Talladega Superspeedway. The move led to an angry radio outburst from his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate.
Briscoe's explanation was posted on X by Fox Sports reporter Bob Pockrass.
"The only time I can think of is maybe when we were coming off that green flag pit stop," Briscoe said. "Denny was, I think, the tail end of the field. And the Chevys had a ton of momentum."
"So I just went with them. I didn't want to just slow down and get behind him and be the last car on the bottom," Briscoe said.
The moment came in Stage 1, after a long stretch of fuel saving. Briscoe, who started on the pole, had been running with Hamlin and Ty Gibbs.
When a line of Chevrolets built speed in the outside lane, Briscoe moved over to join it. Gibbs followed, which left Hamlin without a drafting partner.
Hamlin vented about Briscoe on his team radio.
"F***ing 19, I'm so sick of this s***. He is the f***ing worst," Hamlin said.
Hamlin finished outside the top 10 in Stage 1 and scored no stage points. Briscoe finished the stage seventh. RFK Racing's Stage 1 breakaway put Chris Buescher, Ryan Preece and Brad Keselowski of RFK Racing in the top three.
The situation showed the bind Toyota's contenders were in. Hamlin, Briscoe, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick were all chasing the title in Toyotas, while Kyle Larson was the leading Chevrolet driver in the championship picture.
That meant Larson's fellow Chevrolet drivers could help him without hurting their own title hopes. Toyota's drafting partners were also each other's rivals for the championship.
JGR crew chief Adam Stevens raised that concern before the race, EssentiallySports reported.
"That's something that we're going to have to battle against, and it's a one-horse race over there (with Chevrolet). And they have the resources to put toward it. So, if it comes down to group decision-making, we're at a disadvantage, for sure," Stevens said.
The rest of the day went differently for the two teammates. Briscoe ran third in Stage 2 but was caught in a late crash and finished 33rd. Hamlin recovered from damage in an earlier crash and finished eighth.
Larson won in overtime, extending his lead to 73 points over Hamlin. Briscoe is fourth, 77 points back, with two races left.
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway next, one of two races left in the season. The flat half-mile track races nothing like Talladega's packs, which demand drafting partners like few places in motorsports .
Source: Sports
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