'It's important that I listen' Hamlin says after conversation with Wallace

Denny Hamlin wanted to have a face-to-face conversation with Bubba Wallace after the events of last weekend, which is why it took six days for it to happen.

“It takes time,” Hamlin said Saturday at the Charlotte Roval, where the two met. “I got a lot of stuff going on, so we knew we’d been at the same place, same time here.”

Wallace gave his version of events Saturday morning, revealing that he told Hamlin he wasn’t mad about being put in the fence. The move on the final lap in double overtime, where Hamlin drove underneath Wallace, sent them both up the racetrack. Neither came out of the other side as Chase Elliott took the win.

That didn’t mean Wallace still wasn’t feeling the sting of what happened. Hamlin understood that. However, he did not share what the two discussed.

“I’ll keep that part private, but I think it’s important that I listen,” Hamlin said. “The biggest thing is just listening, and like being a race car driver, I think what’s made me successful is continuing to evolve and trying to get better. I think even as an adult, you have to continue to try to get better, whether it be on track or off track.

“I feel as though it was important for me to listen to his perspective and share mine, and we have that mutual respect for each other. I think that obviously went very well, and I feel like we’re in a good place.”

The immediate aftermath of last weekend, after Wallace flipped off Hamlin under the cool-down lap, didn't contain any criticism from Wallace during his television interview. He walked over to Hamlin and shook his hand, but quickly walked away after doing so. The two did not talk on pit road.

“Truthfully, I didn’t know he was upset, if I’m being honest,” Hamlin admitted. “I listened to him post-race, and I heard him say it was two guys going for it, and he came over and shook my hand. It was quick, but he did. Truthfully, I didn’t know he was upset, but I should have at least checked to make sure. That’s on me.”

Hamlin, who drives for Joe Gibbs Racing, co-owns the car that Wallace drives at 23XI Racing. The two sides have been separate for the past five years since 23XI Racing debuted in the Cup Series, with Hamlin acknowledging he handles his driver responsibilities during the week with Gibbs before moving on to the owner responsibilities he has for 23XI Racing.

In the aftermath of what happened at Kansas Speedway, the delineation between Hamlin the driver and Hamlin the owner was repeatedly mentioned. The situation was the first significant moment Hamlin found himself in that driver versus owner scenario on the racetrack.

“That’s the first time we’ve been, that I can remember, racing for the win,” Hamlin said. “I certainly hope this was not the last. I don’t think it’s going to be the last. You kind of preemptively think of, well, if it comes up again, how can we do things differently, so that one of us gets to the finish line. 

"But, yeah, it was probably one of the first real challenges that I had with the team, and five years in, not bad. I’ll deal with it. It was a crummy week, but I feel like everyone is in a really good place right now.”