Kyle Larson takes a breather before Sunday’s Würth 400 at Dover. (Photo: Josh Jones | The Podium Finish)
DOVER, Del. — Kyle Larson gave it all he had to challenge Denny Hamlin for the win in Sunday’s Würth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway.
All things considered, Larson and his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team put an impressive charge to be in contention for the 400-lap race. Starting 21st for the 400-lap race, Larson’s car lacked its usual punch or pace during Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions.
Then again, compared to Saturday’s overcast and cool at 56 degrees, it was sunny and in the warmer in the high 70s. Even with a concrete surface, track conditions at Dover can change drastically with a 20-degree swing.
Once race day arrived at the 1-mile concrete track, Larson was on the move. In Stage 1, Larson drove from 21st to place fifth, netting six stage points.
A caution-free Stage 2 was ideal for Larson as he had the long, green flag run pace to charge from sixth, his restart position on Lap 130, to the lead on Lap 219.
Kyle Larson scored the Stage 2 win in Sunday’s Würth 400 at Dover. (Photo: Daniel Rankin | The Podium Finish)
Moving toward the middle and higher grooves, Larson’s car was responsive and fast, hugging the higher lanes with ease. Larson netted the Stage 2 win over Alex Bowman, his Hendrick Motorsports teammate.
Banking 16 stage points and a Playoff point, Larson and Bowman found themselves in a near, three-wide battle for the lead off pit road during a Lap 255 pit stop. Bowman checked up to prevent a potential accident as Hamlin and Larson surrounded him.
Although the race off pit road did not decide the race, Hamlin enjoyed the clean air from the lead on the Lap 259 restart. It took 72 laps for Larson to regain the lead, pitting a lap earlier than Hamlin to take advantage of fresh tires.
That advantage was short lived when Josh Berry and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. brought out the caution on Lap 322 for their backstretch incident. While Larson’s pit crew delivered with a solid pit stop, on the ensuing restart on Lap 329, Hamlin darted past Larson before a Lap 330 backstretch crash resulted in another caution.
The lengthy caution period shortened Larson’s opportunities to battle Hamlin once the race resumed green flag action on Lap 339. Hamlin jumped to a lead of at least a second or so while Larson’s car took time to match or better his pace.
Kyle Larson had the long run pace but not enough time to get past Denny Hamlin. (Photo: Jennie Mae Lingle | The Podium Finish)
Inside the final 10 laps, Larson closed the gap to Hamlin, trailing him by only 0.2 seconds. Despite the late race pace by Larson, it was not enough to get past Hamlin, settling for a runner-up result by just 0.256 seconds.
Following the race, Larson lamented on the Lap 329 restart that was the decider for the race. There was not much that Larson could do in the waning moments.
“Not in the last 10,” Larson said. “Just losing the lead when I got the restart as a leader. I went late in the zone. Martin [Truex Jr.] was trying to time it behind me. He hit me right when I wanted to go. Screwed up. Got a lot of wheel spin.”
After Hamlin got past him for the lead, Larson did everything feasible to get past Hamlin, particularly with the final 62 laps of green flag racing.
“He was kind of able to out-race me into [Turn] 1,” he observed. “His car was really good on the short runs. I could pace it, get closer to him at the end of the runs. It’s so easy to air block. Not that he was doing anything dirty or anything like that. It’s so easy as the leader, especially at a place like this, to shut off the air on the guys behind you.
“I knew when I got within three car lengths, he was going to start moving around. I couldn’t really do anything. I was trying all sorts of different angles and speeds, all that. Nothing could generate enough speed to get close enough I guess to do anything. That was a bummer.”
In the grand scheme of things, it was a competitive afternoon for Larson and his No. 5 team, maintaining their 15-point lead advantage over Truex going into the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, May 5 (3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Kyle Larson led twice for 39 laps to net 51 points in Sunday’s Würth 400 at Dover. (Photo: Jennie Mae Lingle | The Podium Finish)
“A great day for our HendrickCars.com Chevy team,” Larson said. “Started 21st, drove up to sixth in the first stage, or fifth. Got a stage win. Another stage win sounds good. Good points day. We would have loved to get a win.
“Always fast here at Dover. Just needed to be a little bit better on the restarts. I’ve lost a lot of races on restarts here. Just keep trying to get better.”
As Larson can attest with his victory at Las Vegas, air blocking was the name of the game. Only this time, he was on the attacking side against Hamlin versus on the defense with Tyler Reddick.
“It’s a little bit easier to pass here than some of the others,” Larson said. “It’s just as hard to pass the leader, for sure. Like I said, it’s just so easy for them to maneuver their car and shut off the air behind him.
“I don’t think he did anything special, but he was able to run in the middle of the racetrack and close me off on the top. If I ever pulled to the bottom, he could pull down and shut off my air. It’s just a product of the car and all that. We did what we could. I just wish I wouldn’t have given up the lead.”
