NASCAR
NASCAR Fans Blast Denny Hamlin, Calling Him a ‘Karen' After He Doxes Uber Driver on Twitter
Kyle Dalton began covering sports in 1992 after he graduated from the University of Texas school of journalism. He published his book Burned Orange: Tom Penders and 10 Years at the University of Texas in 2000, and joined Sports7 in 2020. Kyle expertly covers the NFL, NASCAR, and NCAA football. Kyle finds inspiration in the unscripted drama of sports, the compelling journeys and life stories of the athletes who play the games, and he enjoys reading the work of Mitch Albom. He is a rabid consumer of all sports on all platforms: TV, Twitter, podcasts, live events, and more.
Get to know Kyle Dalton betterUpdated05 Apr 2021
Denny Hamlin hasn't ever really been the most popular driver among NASCAR fans. He's had more than his share of conflicts with other drivers. The three-time Daytona 500 winner even joked recently about how all the drivers he's had feuds with have gone on to win Cup Series championships, while he's yet to win one.
Unfortunately, this weekend Hamlin added to his legacy in Miami during NASCAR's week off due to Easter. Late Saturday night, he took to Twitter and complained about the service he received from an Uber driver, including the driver's profile info in his tweet. The response was overwhelmingly against Hamlin for doxing the driver and potentially jeopardizing the man's livelihood. Interestingly, it's not his first run-in with an Uber driver.
Denny Hamlin's conflicts in the past on the track
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In 17 seasons on the NASCAR Cup Series, Denny Hamlin has tallied 286 top-10 finishes, 44 wins, and multiple conflicts with his fellow drivers. One of the most notable feuds happened in recent years with NASCAR's most popular driver, Chase Elliott.
It started in 2017 when Elliott appeared headed for his first Cup Series victory at Martinsville when Hamlin nudged him from behind with three laps remaining, ending any hopes of victory and damaging Elliott's playoff hopes. A few weeks later, Elliott got payback and knocked Hamlin out of a race.
A few years later, Elliott won the championship. Interestingly, Elliott is the most recent of four drivers who have had feuds with Hamlin at one point in time in their careers and later won titles. The other three are Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, and Joey Logano.
When made aware of that nugget of information, Hamlin joked about it on Twitter, calling himself the “Good Luck Chuck of NASCAR” in reference to the 2007 romantic comedy Good Luck Chuck where women find their one true love after having sex with a dentist named Chuck.
Denny Hamlin doxes Uber driver on Twitter
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While Denny Hamlin can joke about the feuds he's had on the track in the past, he was in no mood for joking late Saturday night. After posting a photo of himself on Instagram earlier in the day wearing his “Sunday best” and drinking an adult beverage from South Beach, something happened between the NASCAR driver and his Uber driver.
Hamlin took to Twitter to air his grievances with the driver.
“Dear @Uber. This guy that is driving around Miami south beach is a complete douche bag,” he wrote.
That tweet by itself wouldn't be considered a big deal. However, Hamlin also included the driver's profile, which included the driver's name and his profile photo.
Receives negative response, including being called a ‘Karen'
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Denny Hamlin received a lot of feedback to his tweet, and much of it negative. Many followers pointed to the profile Hamlin included and how the driver has been driving for six years and received a 4.93 rating, which according to many, is a great record.
“4.9 stars in 6 years in Miami? I'm going with Alejandro on this one,” wrote one person.
Others questioned why Hamlin didn't just reach out to Uber support through the app instead of taking it to Twitter. Uber did respond to Hamlin's post on Twitter asking for more information on the incident.
On the NASCAR subreddit, the sentiment was much the same.
“Denny Hamlin is exactly the type of person I'd expect to Karen complain post on social media,” one post read.
Track record of giving Uber drivers poor ratings
Surprisingly, this isn't Denny Hamlin's first time to complain to about an Uber driver. In 2016, after winning the Daytona 500 for the first time, TMZ caught up with the driver for a quick interview. Uber drivers came up in the conversation and Hamlin admitted he's given poor driver ratings in the past.
“I actually had to turn one Uber driver in because he was awful. He was driving like 30 miles an hour below the speed limit and he was swerving all over the road. I felt bad because I like giving good ratings because I like getting picked up, but that guy was terrible.”
Whether the driver in Miami was driving slow, swerving, or maybe asked him about his pajamas, Hamlin hasn't made clear. One thing that is clear is Denny Hamlin has a critical eye when it comes to drivers and it's not just limited to those who make left turns on Sundays.
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