Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com team so close to strong finish in DAYTONA 500
TRACK: Daytona International Speedway
LENGTH: 2.5-mile oval
DATE: Feb. 19, 2023
STARTED: 2nd
FINISHED: 18th
Kyle Larson started the “Great American Race” from the front row for a second consecutive year. After the green flag, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Champion jumped to the lead on the inside lane on Lap 1 before giving way to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman. He retook the lead on Lap 11 for two laps and again on Lap 21 for three laps. The 30-year-old driver made a nifty save in the HendrickCars.com Chevy early on when a push from reigning champion Joey Logano got him a bit too loose. He pitted for two right-side tires on Lap 38 but the sequence of stops left him outside the top 20 as he finished the stage in 23rd.
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During the stage break, Larson pitted for four tires and fuel. Restarting in 17th on Lap 72, the Elk Grove, California, native worked his way into the top 10 on Lap 96 with the bottom lane proving to be advantageous for him. On Lap 107, Larson pitted from seventh for fuel only and re-entered the top five on Lap 113. He drove through a little bit of grass on Lap 118 to avoid taking on damage from an incident involving teammate Chase Elliott, Erik Jones, Tyler Reddick and several others. Pitting for four tires and fuel just after that, Larson finished the stage in 12th.
A fuel-only stop prior to the final stage helped the driver of the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet gain seven spots on pit road. He restarted fifth for the final stage and quickly moved to third. Another fuel-only stop under caution on Lap 140 saw Larson restart 18th. Crew chief Cliff Daniels hinted over the radio that the team may try to make it to the end on that tank. The 30-year-old methodically worked his way through the field and was scored in third on Lap 178. Following the Lap 188 restart, Larson was up to second with 10 laps to go before the inside line lost momentum. That brought him to the edge of the top 10 with eight laps in regulation and he was scored in eighth coming to the first overtime attempt. Teaming up fellow Chevrolet and eventual race winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the team maneuvered themselves to the front of the field when another caution came out on Lap 204. Larson chose to restart on the inside lane for the second overtime attempt. Larson moved to the middle to try and get the lead from Stenhouse Jr. However, contact with Travis Pastrana sent him into the wall and resulted in an 18th-place finish.
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QUOTING KYLE LARSON:
"Felt like we had an opportunity to win there. I felt like I was going to get to the 47 (Ricky Stenhouse Jr.). I wanted to stay committed to him, at least through (turns) one and two and down the backstretch. I definitely didn’t want to try and go for the lead as early as I did. I just had such a run that I didn’t know what to do with it. I thought if I got to him where I was going to get to him, it was just going to choke us up or cause a crash and we weren’t going to win. Wish I could play that over again."
NEXT RACE:
Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team head west to compete at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California on Sunday, Feb. 26. The 400-mile race will be broadcast live at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
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