Kyle Larson Drives to Dominant Bass Pro Shops Night Race Win

Kyle Larson and his son, Owen, celebrate winning Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. (Photo: Holden Barnes | The Podium Finish)

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Kyle Larson had a Saturday night to remember at Bristol Motor Speedway in his quest for his second NASCAR Cup Series championship.

Starting second in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at the 0.533-mile concrete oval, Larson did not waste much time making his presence known. While his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Alex Bowman, led the opening 32 laps as the polesitter, Larson used the outside line off Turn 2 to take the lead on Lap 33.

Little did the competition knew that Larson would dominate at “The Last Great Colosseum.” Only surrendering the lead during stage break caution pit stops and pitting with the lead lap contenders on Lap 333, the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 was unstoppable.

Even when Larson was lapping his competitors, he raced methodically, patiently navigating around Bristol and extending his lead once he had some clean air. Winning Stages 1 and 2, the 32-year-old Elk Grove, California, native’s drive was complimented by his over-the-wall crew executing smooth pit stops.

As Larson expertly drove past the lapped competitors, the battle was on for second place primarily involving the likes of Bowman, Martin Truex Jr., Chase Elliott, Bubba Wallace and Denny Hamlin. No matter how close the quintet drew to Larson’s lead, it was the 2021 Cup champion’s race to win at one of the toughest short tracks in the circuit.

Besides Larson’s dominant car and fast pit stops, opportunities to make drastic adjustments to counter his performance were far and few between. Aside from stage break cautions, the only yellow flags for incident were John Hunter Nemechek‘s Turn 4 accident on Lap 6, Joey Logano‘s frontstretch crash on Lap 244 and a tangle involving Corey LaJoie and Josh Berry on Lap 330.

Kyle Larson expertly maneuvered past the lapped competitors throughout Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. (Photo: Holden Barnes | The Podium Finish)

On Lap 246, Tyler Reddick stayed out to steal the Stage 2 win but Larson’s fresh Goodyear tires and fast car were too much on the Lap 249 restart. High or low, Larson simply dominated, leading 462 of 500 laps en route to his fifth win of the 2024 season.

Besides clinching a spot in the Round of 12, Larson’s performance was more than dominant; it was historic.

Larson raced his way into the record books by winning the fastest 500-lap race at Bristol with an average speed of 101.277 mph, besting Charlie Glotzbach’s record of 101.074 mph in a caution free race on July 11, 1971.

Leading the most laps at Bristol since Cale Yarbrough (495) on Apr. 17, 1977, Larson bested Hendrick Motorsports’ record of most laps led by a race winner when Jeff Gordon led 431 of 500 laps in the Goody’s Headache Powder 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Apr. 20, 1997.

A historic feat was capped off with Larson’s son, Owen, joining him in the victory celebrations on the fronstretch and ride to Victory Lane adjacent to the infield portions of Turns 3 and 4. Upon reaching the hollowed ground at Bristol, Larson, who secured his second gladiator sword of his career, knew it came down to his team’s preparation from jumpstart.

“Yeah, I mean I knew I had a great car from the start of practice, but everything has to go right,” Larson said. “You just don’t dominate like that without executing the whole weekend. We practiced well and qualified on the front row, which was super important.

“We got the lead early on, and leading these Next Gen races is really beneficial because you can set your own pace and manage your stuff, especially here at Bristol because it allows you to work the bottom on the long run. We had a phenomenal No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevy. Just can’t say enough about the team. Cool to get win number five on the year and hopefully there is more to come.”

Labeling it a “boys’ weekend,” Larson’s 28th career Cup win may be one of his sentimental victories with his son, Owen, and team owner present.

Kyle Larson and his son, Owen, celebrate Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race win at Bristol Motor Speedway with team owner Rick Hendrick. (Photo: Holden Barnes | The Podium Finish)

“Yeah, [it’s] super special. It’s always special to share moments with your son, and also when Rick Hendrick is here,” Larson observed. “He doesn’t get to many of these anymore, so I have been fortunate enough to win a couple of them when he has been here this year and it’s fun to see the happiness on his face.

“He has built such an extremely great team and organization throughout HendrickCars.com, Hendrick Automotive Group, Hendrick Motorsports and everything he is involved with. So, just very, very blessed to be with him.”

In the midst of Hendrick Motorsports’ 40th anniversary season, Larson secured the organization’s 10th win of the 2024 campaign and enters the Round of 12 with a 15-point lead over Christopher Bell.

Meanwhile, Elliott placed runner-up, securing the team’s first 1-2 finish at Bristol since the 1998 Food City 500 when Gordon and Terry Labonte secured the top two spots.

Driving a quiet, methodical race, Elliott tipped his cap to his No. 9 LLumar Chevrolet team on a smooth Saturday night showing.

“I felt like our car was really, really good, and I was proud of the effort and proud of the execution all night,” Elliott said. “Kyle [Larson] did a better job than I did to get through traffic and that was the difference. He got a few cars gap on me, and there was one point in time where we were able to make [up] some time. I pushed really hard when he was hung up with the 19.

“Once he got by the 19, it was going to be tough. There were always three or four cars in between us and by the time I got there, we were later in the run and it just gets tough. He did a great job, and credit to his team and to Kyle, as well. Proud of our effort; felt like we were right there in the mix and had a great shot at it. We keep doing that, and we’ll be OK.”

Wallace drove to a podium finish while musing over the missed opportunity to be in this year’s Playoffs field.

“Yeah, it’s good. The Mobil 1 Toyota Camry was okay – just trying to find the right balance,” Wallace said. “These guys are giving me all of the information, and I’m getting pissed off listening to it – but it is all vital. So, I appreciate them – I appreciate the effort to come up here.

“I told Bootie [Barker, crew chief] that we are a seventh-to-12th place car, coming in here – and we ended up third. It is still not good enough. We have to go to work to figure out how we can be two spots better, but all-in-all – best in class in multiple categories. Just appreciate the effort. It stings, running this well when you are not in the Playoffs, but it just makes you hungrier for next year.”

There will not be a next year in terms of a championship quest for Truex, who will step down from full-time competition after this season. Truex, who was in prime position to advance to the Round of 12, was penalized for speeding while entering pit road, specifically in Section 9, on Lap 332.

Even with a fast car, Truex was unable to mount a late race rally, going a lap down and finishing 24th. Missing the Round of 12 field by 21 points, the 2017 Cup champion was dismayed over the late race speeding penalty.

“We had a good Bass Pro Shops Camry. We did good in the first two stages – we got a lot of points,” Truex said. “I guess we would have had to run second or third to make it through – who knows if we would have been able to. I wish we could have seen if we could have done that. I’m just gutted for my team.

“We worked so hard this week. We all put in a lot – all season long, and in the last three weeks, just snake bit. Can’t do anything right. .09 mph hurts really bad to take the chance away to know if we even could have done it. I don’t know if we could have run second – maybe. We were close to it – all day – but in the end, it doesn’t matter. I feel terrible for my guys.”

On the other hand, Daniel Suárez eked his way into the next Playoffs round despite finishing 31st, four laps off the pace. Then again, his heads up driving at Watkins Glen despite being trapped in the gravel may have saved his championship quest.

“It feels good. It wasn’t pretty, but we knew since practice yesterday that the car wasn’t competitive,” Suárez said. “It just didn’t have a lot of speed. Luckily, our team did a great job in Atlanta and Watkins Glen, and we were able to build a points cushion. It wasn’t a lot of fun, but it’s good to make it through.”

Kyle Larson embraces the Bristol faithful after winning his 28th career Cup race. (Photo: Holden Barnes | The Podium Finish)

For at least the next five days, Larson and his No. 5 team can celebrate their historic feat while the versatile driver can bask in his latest victory at his favorite venue.

“Pretty cool to add my name to another record at Hendrick Motorsports, and again, just very fortunate to be with that group, Chevrolet, Jinya Ramen Bar, Prime, everybody involved, Valvoline,” Larson said. “It’s so much fun, and especially racing in front of you fans under the lights at Bristol.

“This is my favorite track, and I hope you guys enjoyed that race there and enjoyed the methodical lap traffic run.”

Stage 1 Top 10 Results

1. Kyle Larson
2. Alex Bowman
3. Christopher Bell
4. Martin Truex Jr.
5. William Byron
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Chase Briscoe
8. Ty Gibbs
9. Chase Elliott
10. Bubba Wallace

Stage 2 Top 10 Results

1. Kyle Larson
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Tyler Reddick
5. Christopher Bell
6. Bubba Wallace
7. Alex Bowman
8. Chase Briscoe
9. Ryan Blaney
10. Chase Elliott

Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway