Denny Hamlin has spent more than two decades racing against some of NASCAR’s best drivers. But Thursday night, the three-time Daytona 500 winner found himself in an unfamiliar position: riding shotgun while somebody else pushed the limits.
And the man behind the wheel wasn’t exactly taking it easy on him.
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YouTube personality and racer Cleetus McFarland took Hamlin for a high-speed ride around the Freedom Factory in Bradenton, Florida, putting his custom 1,000-horsepower Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing through its paces.
The result was a wild drifting session that had Hamlin reaching for his helmet visor as McFarland threw the car around the track.
For a driver accustomed to being the one in control, it was quite a change of pace.
The footage, shared on social media Thursday night, Nov. 12, shows Hamlin strapped into the passenger seat as McFarland slides his Cadillac around the Freedom Factory.
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The Blackwing is no ordinary street car. McFarland’s heavily modified Cadillac produces approximately 1,000 horsepower and is built for the kind of tire-smoking driving that has helped make his automotive videos so popular.
Hamlin, meanwhile, was along for the ride.
As McFarland worked the steering wheel and sent the Cadillac sideways, Hamlin’s helmet visor came down during the run.
It was an entertaining role reversal for the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran, who has made a career out of controlling race cars at speeds approaching 200 mph.
This time, however, he had no steering wheel, no pedals and absolutely no say in how aggressively McFarland attacked the track.
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The ride came ahead of McFarland’s 2.4 Hours of LeMullets, scheduled for Friday night, Nov. 13, at the Freedom Factory.
Hamlin is among several NASCAR Cup Series drivers participating in the event, alongside Carson Hocevar, Ryan Preece and Ty Dillon.
The race features two-driver teams competing in nitrous-equipped Ford Crown Victorias, a far cry from the highly engineered Next Gen cars Hamlin and his fellow Cup competitors drive every weekend.
The entry list also includes McFarland, Squirrel McNutt, Downforce Danny, Vanilla Ice and T-Pain.
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For Hamlin, the event offers a chance to enjoy racing without the pressure that accompanied his pursuit of a first Cup Series championship in 2026.
His title hopes ended at Homestead-Miami Speedway earlier this month, closing another season in which the veteran came up short of NASCAR’s biggest prize.
But there was no championship on the line Thursday night. Just a 1,000-horsepower Cadillac, plenty of tire smoke and a NASCAR star getting a taste of what it’s like to surrender control.
And judging by the footage, McFarland had no intention of giving his passenger a leisurely tour.
