“He wakes up pissed”: Denny Hamlin reacts to Chase Briscoe’s furious crew chief after NASCAR snubbed Atlanta comeback

Denny Hamlin weighed in on a heated moment between Chase Briscoe's crew chief and NASCAR officials after the #19 Toyota was deemed too damaged to rejoin the race at Echopark Speedway. Briscoe was collected in a mid-race pile-up at the Quaker State 400 and was sidelined from the event despite lengthy repairs. Hamlin shared that he was 'surprised' by the outcome, noting how the car 'looked fine' for him.

Briscoe was an unfortunate victim of the 18-car crash triggered by Hamlin, but his team tried their best to get the No. 19 Toyota back on track. However, their efforts were in vain, as NASCAR ruled them out after catching a bend in the chassis. The decision, apparently coming an hour into the repairs, infuriated the #19 crew chief, James Small.

On Monday, June 30, Hamlin reflected on the tense standoff in an episode of Actions Detrimental.

"I saw James Small and one of the head NASCAR officials nose to nose when they told him he was done. They had been working on that 19-car for an hour, and then he must have told James that they were done because something was bent that is not replaceable......And James Small was pissed. I think he wakes up pissed," he said. [29:35 onwards] "And I looked at the 19 cars. I was very surprised to see him towed into the garage; it looked fine to me," he added.

Chase Briscoe was marked 35th in the event, ten spots behind his In-Season Challenge matchup, Noah Gragson, who advances to the second round to square off against Rousch Fenway Keselowski Racing's Ryan Preece.

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Chase Briscoe looks to redeem himself at Chicago after Atlanta misery

After an 'unfortunate day' in Atlanta, Chase Briscoe expressed optimism for the upcoming road courses at Chicago Street Course and Sonoma Raceway. While he's yet to crack the top 10 in his two starts at Chicago, his recent win at Pocono Raceway suggests a solid momentum going forward.

"Looking forward to two road courses coming up. I think our road course program has been pretty good. Hopefully a JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) car or a Toyota can win. Just unfortunate day for us," he said via Speedway Digest.

However, contrary to Chase Briscoe's opinion, Chicago and Sonoma are among the weakest tracks for JGR, with average finishes of 21 and 24, respectively. As NASCAR heads to Round 2 of the In-Season Challenge, it remains to be seen if the team has made any gains on that front.

Ty Gibbs stands as the team's sole representative in this round after knocking out Justin Haley with a 15th-place finish at Echopark. Fans can watch the Chicago Street Race on TNT Sports on Sunday, July 6, at 2 PM ET.

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Edited by Tushhita Barua