Late-race speeding penalty stalls Larson's strong run at Watkins Glen
TRACK: Watkins Glen International
LENGTH: 2.45-mile road course
DATE: Aug. 20, 2023
STARTED: 5th
FINISHED: 26th
STANDINGS: 5th (-140 points)
At Watkins Glen International, Kyle Larson started race weekend strong by ranking fourth fastest in Saturday’s practice. In qualifying, the No. 5 driver advanced to the second round and scored the HendrickCars.com team a fifth-place starting position for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race.
Following the green flag for the 220-mile long race, the Elk Grove, California, native quickly settled into the sixth position. Larson executed strong laps in order to hold that position. Halfway into the 20-lap first stage, Larson reported his Chevy was tight into turn two and loose into turn three. A green-flag pit cycle began just before the end of stage one but- Larson stayed out and finished in the sixth position.
With no caution at the end of the stage, the 2021 Cup Series champion made a green-flag pit stop for four tires and fuel to start stage two. He joined the field amongst the top 10 cars. Just five laps into the second stage, Larson had navigated his way back into the top five. He continued to successfully defend his track position throughout the stage. With five laps remaining in the second stage of the race, Larson passed the fifth-place competitor claiming the fourth position. One lap later over the radio, crew chief Daniels told Larson to focus on hitting his marks in turn one. With two laps to go in the stage, Daniels informed Larson he was now performing equal to those in front of him in turn one and executing a faster pace than those who he trailed. On lap 40, Larson scored a fourth-place finish in stage two, earning stage points.
The race remained green after the completion of stage two. In stage three, Larson continued to battle forward in the field, slowly gaining on the three competitors in front of him. At the halfway point, Larson passed the car ahead of him to claim the third position. Larson then trailed four seconds behind the leader (Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron) until he made a second green-flag pit stop on lap 55. The No. 5 crew chief called his driver down pit road for four tires and fuel. As he was exiting pit lane, Larson received a penalty for speeding just as the caution came out on the same lap. Unfortunately, the 31-year-old driver was forced to start from the rear of the field for his speeding penalty. When pit road opened under the yellow, Larson came back to the attention of his team for four tires and fuel. He then chose 30th for the restart with 30 laps to go. In the next 15 laps, Larson maneuvered up the field gaining 10 positions. With less than 15 laps remaining in the race, the No. 5 driver ranked 19th until the final lap. While defending his position, Larson and the No. 3 made contact in turn seven causing both to spin. At the checkered flag, the HendrickCars.com team was scored with a 26th-place finish.
QUOTING KYLE LARSON:
“We just had another really good car here. The race played out how it played out. We were able to run those guys (competitors ahead of Larson) down and then I sped on pit road and killed our race from there. I’m pretty upset with myself, once again. But, it was great to have another fast car.”
NEXT RACE:
Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team head to Daytona International Speedway for the final regular season race before the NASCAR playoffs begin. The 400-mile superspeedway race that takes place under the lights Saturday, Aug. 26 goes green at 7 p.m. ET on NBC.
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