Kyle Larson fought hard to rally to a top 15 finish and a Round of 8 Playoffs spot at Charlotte. (Photo: Jared Bokanoski | The Podium Finish)
CONCORD, N.C. — When it seemed like Kyle Larson’s back was up against a wall, he came through with a methodical race at Charlotte.
Last Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 would be a genuine test for the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team. After a practice crash that forced Larson to start toward the rear of the field, he had a slow and steady climb up the leaderboard.
Driving wisely and conservatively, Larson drove from his 36th starting position to place 24th in Stage 1. Then, with different pit strategies mixing up the running order, the 31-year-old Elk Grove, California native netted a fifth place finish, scoring six important stage points.
From there, Larson opted to drive with a smooth, nearly spotless effort in his backup car. As his Hendrick Motorsports crew worked feverishly on the understudy, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion worked on keeping himself mentally sharp and void of any doubts.
Stage 3 offered moments that could have derailed a championship run for the 22-time Cup race winner. However, he did not flinch as he skillfully avoided some close calls and kept cool under the pressure once he reached the top 10.
At one point, it looked like Larson would score an impressive top 10 finish. Crew chief Cliff Daniels kept motivating his driver to stay after it to race wisely but aggressively to get some insurance, or points cushion, over those below the Playoffs cutline like Brad Keselowski, Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace and Kyle Busch.
Probably the closest call for Larson came on Lap 88 in Turn 11 when he was near an incident involving Wallace and Austin Cindric. Disaster seemed inevitable for the hard charging racer but on this occasion, he scooted past the fracas, able to fight for the final 22 laps of the race.
Unlike last year’s race when an unforced error into the wall eliminated him the Playoffs, Larson was smooth, choosing his battles wisely.
Although a 13th place finish may not be something to write about, it becomes a storyline if it means advancing to the Round of 8. In this case, Larson and his team advanced to the penultimate leg of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
Kyle Larson drove a mostly faultless race at Charlotte to make the Round of 8. (Photo: Stephen Conley | The Podium Finish)
It was not lost on Larson with how frantic things became with the needed backup for the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL. Typically tenacious and aggressive, Larson’s tempered approach proved it is about winning the war, not the battle.
“It was a stressful weekend, but the No. 5 team and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports did a great job working hard on this backup car late,” Larson said. ‘I felt like our car was really good today.
“We were just pretty conservative there at times. I just didn’t want to make a mistake like I did last year and take ourselves completely out of it. It was just stressful there the final stage, but we were able to get in, which was the goal.”
Now, with the goal accomplished, Larson and his team have three golden opportunities to chase a championship in Phoenix. As a past race winner at Las Vegas, Homestead-Miami and Martinsville, the good times may be just around the corner after surviving the tough Round of 12.
Before he advanced into the Round of 8, Larson observed the handling nuances of Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs and AJ Allmendinger. Fortunately, for Larson and company, they have a great chance to punch their ticket to Phoenix without breaking many sweats.
“Yeah, I had my eyes on the No. 8, for sure,” he said. “I was nervous on the restarts. I just assumed that the No. 54 (Ty Gibbs) and the No. 16 (AJ Allmendinger) would crash or something, and then he’d get in the lead and throw a wrench in everything.
“It worked out and I’m just happy to get through this round. I didn’t execute nearly good enough. We’re going to some great tracks for us in this next round and hopefully we’ll make it to Phoenix.”
