NASCAR Prez Contradicts Himself & Confirms What Denny Hamlin Said How Driver Safety Not Top Priority

Denny Hamlin was outspoken about the Next Gen car in July 2021, months before its debut, expressing concern about safety issues. He recently acknowledged how drivers boycotted the NASCAR docuseries "Race for the Championship" last year in protest of how executives were insistent on pushing forward with the new car without properly testing the car for safety.

Fast forward to this season, where drivers have repeatedly said how impacts in the new car are more intense. In July, everyone saw the effects of those crashes when Kurt Busch suffered a concussion backing into the wall at Pocono during qualifying. He never returned. Alex Bowman suffered a concussion in September at Texas in a similar type of incident.

The drivers united at Talladega a week later, went public with their concerns, and called out NASCAR for its lack of concern about safety as evidenced by the car taking a step backward in that department. NASCAR President Steve Phelps and officials responded to the drivers, held a meeting to discuss the issues, and then repeated what the sanctioning body has insisted all along how driver safety is the No. 1 priority.

This week during the "State of the Sport" address before the championship races in Phoenix, Phelps talked about the importance of safety in the new car, and then moments later contradicted himself, and confirmed what Hamlin and other drivers have repeatedly suggested that driver safety has not been the top priority.

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