By: Zach Arnold

For many years, Kyle Busch was the villain of NASCAR, no doubt. His personality did not sit well with viewers of the sport, and his on-track antics did not make fans happy. He also won a lot, over 220 times throughout his career, and many became tired of it. He left Joe Gibbs Racing after the 2022 season, and seemed to leave his old personality at JGR as well. This year, fans seem to be very neutral with Busch. For once, the crowd cheered for him after winning a race. There are definitely still Kyle Busch “haters,” but not as many are as vocal about Busch as they were through the previous decade.

It didn’t take long for Hamlin to fill in the villain position. In the last three years, there have been several instances where the driver of the No. 11 Toyota Camry has been in a drama-filled on-track situation. The first one that comes to mind goes back to October of 2021 at Martinsville.

With seven laps to go, Hamlin was spun out by Alex Bowman; Bowman would go on to win the race. When he reached the finish line to celebrate with a burnout, he was also met by the No. 11, displaying his frustration to Bowman. Hamlin did not let Bowman do a burnout, as he rammed the nose of his car into the No. 48.

“He’s just a hack, an absolute hack,” Hamlin said post-race. Keep in mind, Bowman drives for Hendrick Motorsports. Arguably, HMS is the fan-favorite team; they have had a driver who has won the most popular driver for the last 20 years.

2022 was probably worse than the previous year for Hamlin and making friends in the NASCAR garage. Ross Chastain was arguably his most significant enemy, always finding a way to hurt the No. 11’s day due to wrecking out. Even though Hamlin had a reason to be upset, the 42-year-old became vocal about the situation and upset many fans with the way he complained about it. Chastain even admitted that he was at fault multiple times.

Heading into 2023, Chastain and Hamlin agreed to race each other clean and end the drama. However, Hamlin found himself in a deeper hole at Charlotte Motor Speedway during the Coca-Cola 600. Hamlin was racing Chase Elliott throughout the race. It appeared that the No. 11 ran the No. 9 up the track, eventually causing Elliott to make contact with the outside wall. In retaliation, Elliott wrecked Hamlin into the fence; this was one of the largest hits we’ve seen all year.

Hamlin did not back down after getting out of the car, saying, “I got right-rear hooked in the middle of the straightaway. It’s a tantrum and he shouldn’t be racing next week. Right rear hooks are absolutely unacceptable; it’s the same thing Bubba Wallace did with Kyle Larson,”

This did not sit well with Elliott fans, as he has been the most popular driver for the last five years. More became upset with Hamlin after he said the most popular driver should be suspended for a week. The second generating racer did end up being suspended for one race, putting him in an even tougher position to make the playoffs as he already missed time in the year due to an injury.

Most recently, Hamlin has realized he is not liked by NASCAR fans. Since realizing this, he has been trying to upset them when it’s right. He won Bristol and did not hold back. ” I beat your favorite driver… all of them,” he said to the fans after getting out of the car at the finish line.

So, do you think Hamlin has taken over the role of the villain of NASCAR?