Denny Hamlin has tweeted himself into hot water.
The NASCAR Cup Series driver and team owner apologized Monday for sharing a meme he admits is “offensive” and “totally wrong.” The “Family Guy” clip Hamlin tweeted references a female Asian driver, and it had Kyle Larson’s name superimposed over the driver. Larson, whose mother is Asian-American, caused a crash Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway in the Geico 500, Twitter users soon helped Hamlin realize the folly of trafficking in cheap stereotypes.
“I took down a post I made earlier today after reading some of the comments,” Hamlin wrote in a tweet. “It was a poor choice of memes and I saw how it was offensive. It came across totally wrong. I apologize.”
Hamlin might have run afoul of NASCAR rules, which prohibit statements that disparage “a person’s race, color, creed, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, age, or handicapping condition,” according to NBC Sports.
NASCAR hasn’t announced whether it will discipline Hamlin.
