Denny Hamlin explains NASCAR penalty logic after Bubba Wallace’s Atlanta penalty

Denny Hamlin says he grasps why Bubba Wallace was penalized at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday night, even as the 23XI Racing co-owner had to step aside from the fallout.

NASCAR issued an **out of bounds** penalty to Bubba Wallace on the final lap of the **NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on 29 Jun 2025**, dropping him from second to 29th and costing him 27 points in the Chase for the Championship. The call stemmed from Wallace briefly going below the double yellow line to improve his position, a move NASCAR’s Rule Book Section 8.3.2 flags regardless of whether he gained an advantage.

Hamlin wears two hats: driver of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 and co-owner of 23XI Racing: and the penalty landed on 23XI Performance Director Dave Rogers to handle. On Monday’s *Actions Detrimental* podcast, Hamlin said he understood the call because he’s been penalized for the same move before. “I’ve been black-flagged for it,” he said. “I know and understand the rule.”

The rule hinges on intent, not result. Even if Wallace didn’t keep the spot, NASCAR flags any move made to gain position below the line. Hamlin stressed the wording “to advance” means the act itself is penalized, not the outcome. “The minute you step your foot out of bounds, it doesn’t matter whether you gained an advantage,” he said.

Wallace led briefly during the final lap before the penalty dropped him to 29th. Hamlin called the loss “brutal” because Wallace’s 23XI team was fast all night and recovered from an earlier spin. “They came from the back again from the Ty Gibbs thing,” Hamlin said. “They were fast, man. And listen, they were aggressive.”

NASCAR’s rulebook states any car that “goes beneath the double painted lines to improve its position” can be black-flagged. It also covers forcing another car below the line to advance. Hamlin said drivers can’t treat the yellow line like a suggestion. “That yellow line, that is a wall essentially,” he said. “And the minute that you step your foot out of bounds, that’s what they call.”

Wallace later argued the apron and race track looked similar at Atlanta’s steep banking, but Hamlin said the intent standard stays the same. “Inside the car, we can’t see the lines,” Wallace said after the race. “When you turn there, that’s the moment you first see the difference.”