NASCAR Driver Denny Hamlin Boosts NASCAR’s MLB Collab as Home Team Takes On Atlanta at Bristol

When the “Last Great Coliseum” transforms into America’s newest baseball diamond next summer, it will mark more than just another sporting event. It represents NASCAR’s growing cultural crossover appeal. NASCAR veteran Denny Hamlin, who has claimed four victories at Thunder Valley’s half-mile oval, enthusiastically endorsed the unprecedented MLB-NASCAR collaboration during the Bristol race weekend. The 44-year-old driver, who has experienced firsthand the thunderous roar of 146,000 fans at this concrete coliseum, sees this boundary-crossing venture as bringing different sporting worlds together in NASCAR’s heartland.

Last year, MLB announced that the Braves and Reds would play a regular season game in 2025 at the iconic Bristol Motor Speedway. The event is set to feature both NASCAR and LMB legends with the high banks concrete being converted into a diamond. This diamond will be built across the track and the infield area between Turns 3 and 4. Well, we’ve seen NASCAR racing on a multi-purpose sports venue at the LA Coliseum recently, but this move by Bristol is a major step up. Hamlin, who is on the cusp of making history today, was excited about this crossover.

Hamlin Draws a Parallel Between Bristol’s MLB Venture and Chicago Street Race

“I think it’s great for the facility and certainly they’ve hosted a few other sports as well,” Hamlin told reporters at Bristol. Drawing a compelling comparison to NASCAR’s own expansion efforts, he added: “It’s very similar to me what we did in Chicago, right? You’re bringing the game to the people.” This parallel between NASCAR’s street race initiative and MLB’s venture into NASCAR territory demonstrates how both sporting bodies are pushing boundaries to reach new audiences.

The MLB Speedway Classic, as the event has been dubbed, will take place on August 2, 2025, with the Cincinnati Reds serving as the home team against the Atlanta Braves. Not only will this mark the first Major League Baseball game hosted at a NASCAR track, but it will also be the first National League/American League game ever played in Tennessee. The baseball diamond will be constructed in Bristol’s infield, with fans having options to watch from the speedway’s standard grandstands or purpose-built seating closer to the action.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred emphasized the special nature of the venue, stating, “Major League Baseball is excited to deliver a special game at Bristol Motor Speedway, a unique setting that sports fans will remember forever.” The facility’s proven ability to host massive crowds is well-documented—Bristol welcomed between 130,045 and 156,990 fans (depending on counting methodology) for the 2016 college football game between Virginia Tech and Tennessee, setting an NCAA attendance record. For the MLB game, the speedway will leverage its wraparound stadium seating while adding baseball-specific accommodations.

The timing of this announcement couldn’t be more significant as Bristol continues to cement its reputation as NASCAR’s most versatile venue. For Denny Hamlin and other drivers, seeing their home track branch into other sports reinforces what they’ve long known—Bristol’s unique combination of intimate racing and massive seating capacity makes it unlike any other sporting venue in America. Remember that from 2021 to 2023, the half-mile concrete surface was converted into a dirt track.

The Bristol MLB game represents an interesting reversal of NASCAR’s own Clash at the Coliseum event, which ran from 2022 to 2024 inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. While that initiative brought NASCAR into a traditional football venue, the MLB Speedway Classic brings America’s pastime into NASCAR territory. As Hamlin noted, this region—with Knoxville and other college sports hubs nearby—has deep sporting traditions but lacks a major league baseball presence. “This is a big area for sports when you think about how close you got Knoxville and some other college football teams around this area,” Hamlin added, underscoring how the MLB-NASCAR collaboration fills a regional sporting void while strengthening NASCAR’s position as a cultural cornerstone of American sports.

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From Ohio Against the World to Bristol: Hamlin’s Cross-Sport Allegiances Shape His NASCAR Identity

Denny Hamlin’s “11 Against the World” flag, which made a dramatic appearance during his Martinsville victory celebration, originated from an unexpected source: his passionate friendship with Ohio State Buckeyes fans. “I never went to college, so no allegiance to any other schools. I’ve got 2 friends who are absolute lunatic fanatics of OSU. Went to a game to watch them be fans, and I was wildly entertained,” Hamlin revealed on social media. What began as joining friends at Ohio State games transformed into genuine enthusiasm for the Buckeyes, who advanced to the NCAA Championship game after defeating Texas 28-14 in the Cotton Bowl.

The flag itself represents the intersection of Denny Hamlin’s sporting worlds, inspired by his Ohio State friends’ “Ohio Against the World” mantra that they carried to college football games. Hamlin embraced this combative philosophy, adapting it to his NASCAR identity as he once explained, “when we didn’t have the flag, I felt naked without this flag.” Ironically, the flag that became central to his NASCAR villain persona was gifted by a Penn State fan before his dominant Martinsville performance. This connection illustrates how Hamlin’s sporting allegiances cross traditional boundaries. Much like Bristol hosting an MLB game represents NASCAR influence spreading beyond its traditional boundaries.

A social media post from Hamlin about joining the Ohio State Football bandwagon during the college football playoffs drew major attention from online users. The post triggered Notre Dame fans, with one sarcastically responding, “Notre Dame by a million. Thank you for this. 1 podcast, 0 championships. Choke artist,” referencing Hamlin’s championship-less NASCAR career despite 55 wins. Looks like Hamlin isn’t making friends outside of NASCAR as well, and that just might feed his inner racer even more.