KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Final 12 months, Kyle Larson gained the spring race at Kansas Speedway by the thinnest of margins — 0.001 seconds within the closest end in NASCAR Cup Collection historical past.
On Sunday, after placing his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on the pole on Saturday, Larson defended his victory in much more decisive style, main 221 of 267 laps in successful the AdventHealth 400 on the 1.5-mile observe.
The triumph was Larson’s third of the season, tying race runner-up Christopher Bell for many within the sequence thus far this 12 months. The win was Larson’s third at Kansas and the thirty second of his profession, tying NASCAR Corridor of Famer Dale Jarrett for twenty ninth on the profession checklist.
“Nice automotive, nice execution right this moment, too, for our workforce,” mentioned Larson, who now will begin to focus on the Indianapolis 500/Coca-Cola 600 double he’ll try for the second time later this month.
“Glad to not win by an inch proper right here this time and a bit of bit safer hole. However thanks once more to the workforce. Congrats to all of Hendrick Motorsports, the engine store, everyone there.”
Larson reached a number of important milestones on Sunday. His profession laps led reached 10,073, behind solely Kyle Busch (19,440) and Denny Hamlin (15,613) amongst full-time lively drivers.
Sweeping the primary and second levels, Larson now has eight stage wins this season, a file for the primary 12 Cup races of a season. His stage sweep was the 14th of his profession.
Larson now leads the sequence standings by 35 factors over Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who completed twenty fourth after falling off the lead lap with an early flat tire.
The colossal numbers, nevertheless, don’t inform the complete story. On the finish of the ultimate 49-lap green-flag run, Larson needed to handle his right-side tires, and his benefit over Bell shrank from a cushty two seconds to only 0.712 seconds on the end line.
Closing quick in third, Ryan Blaney completed simply 0.832 seconds behind the race winner.
“I used to be attempting actually arduous to tempo myself, as a result of I consider that was our longest run of the day,” Larson mentioned. “I’d been struggling a bit of bit on the finish of the runs.
“I don’t know if it was paying off or not on the finish. I used to be nonetheless struggling. I don’t know if the correct entrance was beginning to put on lots or what, however I used to be beginning to lose a variety of grip, after which I used to be vibrating actually dangerous, so I used to be afraid a proper rear or one thing would let go.”
As shut as Bell received on the end, it wasn’t a very satisfying runner-up end for the driving force of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
“I didn’t really feel like we had been superb right this moment,” Bell mentioned. “We certified properly, had good pit stops, by no means actually had any points to set us again. However on the observe, we had been continuously going the unsuitable course as an alternative of going ahead.
“However everybody fought arduous on this Reser’s Camry and received us an excellent end. I don’t know. I’m certain I can be lots happier about it tomorrow and later within the week, however simply didn’t really feel like we had been superb, and we had been nonetheless proper there, so I feel that’s a testomony to how good this workforce is.”
Serving to Larson’s trigger was the sequence of occasions at first of the race’s ultimate stage, which additionally was emblematic of hapless Brad Keselowski’s complete season
A fast pit cease received Keselowski’s No. 6 Ford out in fourth place behind Chase Elliott, Larson and Blaney for a restart. As Elliott widened his lead, Keselowski took third and battled Larson side-by-side for second, with Keselowski prevailing on Lap 179.
Chasing Elliott with the prospect of a season-altering victory in sight, Keselowski narrowed Elliott’s lead from practically two seconds to 0.913 seconds, however on Lap 195, Keselowski blew a right-front tire getting into Flip 1 and slapped the surface wall.
“I hit fairly arduous, so I doubt it’s fixable, however we’ll see,” Keselowski radioed to his workforce.
He was proper. The No. 6 Ford left the observe on a wrecker, out of the race in thirty seventh place. The 2012 Cup champion has but to attain a prime 10 or lead a lap this season.
Nonetheless, Keselowski’s accident was a boon for Larson, who regained management of the race thereafter. Elliott had usurped the highest spot out of the pits on Lap 169 and gapped the remainder of the sphere after a Lap 174 restart.
Throughout pit stops below the fourth warning for Keselowski’s wreck, nevertheless, Elliott’s crew had bother with the correct rear tire, and Elliott misplaced 11 positions for the next restart on Lap 201. He by no means recovered and light to fifteenth on the end.
Chase Briscoe ran fourth for the fourth time this season. Alex Bowman scraped the wall within the closing laps and held fifth forward of Ford drivers Josh Berry, Ryan Preece, Chris Buescher and Joey Logano.
John Hunter Nemechek got here house tenth, scoring his second straight prime 10 on an intermediate observe.
The race featured seven cautions—4 within the ultimate stage—for a complete of 37 laps. Elliott led 29 laps, the one driver apart from Larson to steer greater than 4.
