Larson's finishing position doesn't show the strength of the No. 5 Chevy at Texas
TRACK: Texas Motor Speedway
LENGTH: 1.5-mile oval
DATE: Sept. 24, 2023
STARTED: 11th
FINISHED: 31st
STANDINGS: 8th
Kyle Larson earned an 11th-place starting position for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at HendrickCars.com’s Home track – Texas Motor Speedway.
Following the green flag for the 400-mile race, Larson wasted no time navigating his No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 into the top 10 by lap two. He maintained this top-10 position for the next 38 laps until the HendrickCars.com team executed a scheduled green-flag pit stop. Larson brought his Chevy to the attention of his crew for four tires, fuel and adjustments. The first caution of the day occurred just a few laps later with Larson running in the 12th position. He stayed out when pit road opened and at the completion of the pit cycle was scored fifth. He took the inside lane of the third row for the restart. Before the field could complete a lap, another caution occurred with a string of two more cautions following. On lap 77, under the yellow, Larson visited his crew for four tires, fuel and adjustments to tighten up his Chevy slightly. He chose 14th for the restart with one lap to go in the stage. At the end of the 80-lap stage, he was scored in the 11th position.
During the stage break, select competitors visited pit road allowing Larson to choose ninth for the stage-two restart. Over the next 21 laps, the Elk Grove, California, native climbed to the third position before the sixth caution of the day occurred. When pit road opened, Larson’s HendrickCars.com Chevy was serviced by his team for four tires, fuel and adjustments to slightly loosen him up. He chose seventh, taking the outside for the restart with 47 laps to go in the stage. In just two laps, Larson re-claimed a spot within the top five. For the next 20 laps, he hit his marks to inch his way forward and successfully pass competitors. With 23 laps to go in the stage, Larson took the lead and maintained it, winning the second stage and earning a playoff point.
Before the start of stage three, the 31-year-old driver came down pit road for four tires and fuel. A fast stop from his crew allowed him to defend the lead and guide the field back to green from the inside lane. Although scored in the first position, that did not stop Larson’s progression. During the next 37 laps, he held the lead and built a four-second advantage over the second-place competitor before a caution occurred with 59 laps to go. When pit road opened, the HendrickCars.com pit crew executed a clean stop for four tires and fuel. Larson led the field back to green from the inside with 53 laps to go. During the next 28 laps, his Chevy proved its speed once more as Larson developed a five-second lead over the second-place competitor. With 25 laps to go, a caution occurred once again. The 2021 Cup Series champion stayed out when pit road opened. He led the field back to green from the inside lane with 20 laps to go, thanks to help from his Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron from behind. One lap later, the No. 5 entry was involved in an on-track incident in turn 2, bringing out a caution. The No. 5 team attempted to repair Larson’s Chevy, but ultimately was forced to go behind the wall, ending their day early and was scored with a 31st-place finish.
QUOTING KYLE LARSON:
“Our race car was super-fast. We had an extremely fast car so it was fun to drive and the ending was just a bummer. You know, I wasn’t expecting to get loose there with the (No.) 23 at the end. With the Next Gen cars, it doesn’t seem to be an issue. I was trying to get my shape going into (turn) one and just should have gave a little more space.”
NEXT RACE:
Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team head to the high banks at Talladega Superspeedway for the second race in the Round of 12. The 500-mile Home race takes place Sunday, Oct. 1 and goes green at 2 p.m. ET on NBC.
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