Denny Hamlin isn’t backing down from his claims about Hendrick Motorsports’ advantage within Chevrolet, even after Rick Hendrick publicly challenged his remarks. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has now responded to the team owner’s defense, suggesting Hendrick’s reaction only adds to the questions surrounding the manufacturer’s technical setup arrangements. Their latest exchange comes just days after Hendrick used a championship celebration to take a playful shot at Hamlin over an earlier Snickers comment. But while that joke sparked some laughs, the Chevrolet debate has exposed a far more serious disagreement between the two.

“Sounds like he’s defensive,” Denny Hamlin said, implying he wasn’t impressed by Rick Hendrick’s explanation of Chevrolet’s technical information-sharing arrangement. During an interview with Bob Pockrass, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver doubled down on his criticism after the HMS owner publicly rejected suggestions of preferential treatment.

Hamlin believes Hendrick’s organization enjoys an advantage that goes beyond receiving engineering information at the same time as its Chevrolet rivals. He also pointed to the persistent performance gap between the teams and questioned how much influence Hendrick has over the manufacturer’s competition decisions.

The disagreement started after the October 25 Talladega race, when Kyle Larson received attention over alleged manufacturer instructions to help his championship campaign. Before the event, journalist Danielle Trotta reported hearing that Chevrolet had instructed its teams to help Larson maintain track position and maximize stage points.

Her report attracted criticism, but Hamlin defended her reporting on his Actions Detrimental podcast. He argued that drivers such as Ross Chastain had little choice but to follow manufacturer expectations because they ultimately answered to their teams and Chevrolet. Hamlin even laid out what he believed was the chain of command: Hendrick at the top, followed by Chevrolet, Trackhouse, crew chiefs and drivers. He claimed that decisions effectively ran through Hendrick rather than Chevrolet alone.

Hamlin’s criticism went beyond the alleged race-day instructions. He questioned whether Hendrick’s position within Chevrolet gave the organization greater influence over technical resources and information. “I don’t believe anyone will ever be Tier 1 with Chevy other than Hendrick because you control it,” he said. He then raised a direct question about Richard Childress Racing: “Do we really honestly believe that RCR is getting the same information as Hendrick from Chevy?”

The argument was particularly pointed because Hendrick and RCR already have a technical partnership through Hendrick Childress Development, their joint engine-development venture. However, that alliance concerns engine research and development, not proof that Hendrick controls all of Chevrolet’s technical information or race-day decisions. Hamlin also questioned the role of GM’s Charlotte Technical Center, which he characterized as effectively operating under Hendrick’s influence. That was his assessment, not an established description of the facility’s ownership or management.

Hendrick subsequently rejected the suggestion that his organization receives preferential access to Chevrolet’s technical information. “Someone said that we get all the information from Chevrolet, and that’s not the case, and he can answer this. All of the teams that are the three organizations get the same information at the same time, and how they decide to use it is up to them,” he explained.

He specifically identified Hendrick Motorsports, RCR and Trackhouse Racing as the three organizations receiving the information. Hendrick also dismissed the idea of a funnel through which his team gets the data first before passing it along to the others. His position was that all three organizations receive the same information simultaneously, with their individual performance depending on how they use it.

Hamlin, however, believes that explanation does not settle the larger question. “The one Chevrolet team is by far better than the rest, year in, year out. It’s not like an anomaly,” he told Pockrass. He also referred to drivers who have reportedly struggled when attempting to use Hendrick setups. “Everyone has to post their setups, but if you put in a Hendrick setup, it’s undrivable,” he added.

For Hamlin, the difference between having access to the same information and being able to translate it into a competitive advantage is precisely what deserves scrutiny. He acknowledged that Hendrick and other owners regularly hear his opinions through their conversations, but defended his podcast commentary as an honest assessment of issues raised in the garage. “That’s my job as a podcaster,” he said.

And the Chevrolet disagreement isn’t the only recent clash between the two. Their Snickers exchange has added a more personal dimension to the rivalry. In July, Hamlin suggested on his podcast that Hendrick and his frustrated supporters needed to have a Snickers after the organization’s disappointing run.

Following Larson’s championship victory, Hendrick turned the remark into a joke of his own, posing with Larson, Jeff Gordon and Cliff Daniels while all four held Snickers bars beside the trophy. Hamlin later clarified that his original comment targeted online trolls, not Hendrick himself, and joked that the other three championship contenders could use some Snickers, too.

The photograph was a playful response, but the latest Chevrolet debate has brought the competitive tension between the two back into focus.