Kyle Larson led 99 laps and appeared set for the Texas win until trouble struck with 19 laps to go. (Photo: Sean Folsom | The Podium Finish)
FORT WORTH, Texas — Ahead of the Round of 12 opener at Texas Motor Speedway, Kyle Larson was confident and ready to pursue a critical victory.
As the only track where fate is mostly left in the hands of the drivers, Larson was like a Texas Hold’em player. Simply put, he was ready to play his cards at the right time.
Qualifying 11th for the 267-lap race, the Hendrick Motorsports racer remained in this spot at the end of Stage 1. However, the 31-year-old Elk Grove, California native stepped up to the challenge of Stage 2.
Working his way inside the top 10 in the opening laps, he quickly charged his way inside the top three. Not long after, Larson challenged the top two with a unique line.
Larson arched the middle to high grooves in Turns 1 and 2, an advantageous choice with the lead lap contenders running on the bottom lane. Soon after, he clicked off the fastest laps, easily taking the lead from pole sitter Bubba Wallace on Lap 143 off Turn 2.
It was a smooth path to a Stage 2 victory for Larson as he bested Erik Jones, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney and Chris Buescher to the stripe. Netting 10 stage points and a valuable Playoff point, it appeared as if it was Larson’s race to lose at Texas.
With the race winding down in Stage 3, Larson held serve with the exception of a few laps for green flag pit stops. Then, a caution for JJ Yeley’s incident in Turn 2 on Lap 245 changed the complexity of the race.
In this case, Larson, along with 14 of the lead lap contenders, opted to stay out for track position while the remaining racers pitted for tires and fuel. On a day where it seemed like new tires were not as critical as other venues, the race seemed to fall in Larson’s hands.
Early on, Kyle Larson paced himself before dropping the hammer at Texas. (Photo: Dylan Nadwodny | The Podium Finish)
Once the race was back underway on Lap 249, Larson led the restart albeit in somewhat shaky fashion. Wallace ran to his outside and managed to draw even with the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion.
On Lap 250, Larson and Wallace remained side-by-side as they approached Turn 1. Neither driver wanted to blink first but it came down to who could commit and stick the lane perfectly for the lead.
Suddenly, Larson, on the inside of Wallace, got aero loose, backing hard into the Turn 1 wall. Heavy rear damage and slight damage to the right front fender curtailed a promising afternoon at Texas.
After being evaluated and released from the infield care center, Larson lamented over his wrecked Darlington winning ride.
“Our race car was super fast,” Larson said. “I mean, we had an extremely fast car, so it was fun to drive and it’s just a bummer.”
Although the incident looked similar to those seen at Michigan and Kansas’ past races this year, Larson held himself accountable, not the car.
After a tough result at Texas, Kyle Larson hopes to gain points at Talladega and the Charlotte ROVAL. (Photo: Dylan Nadwodny | The Podium Finish)
“I wasn’t expecting to get loose in like that underneath the No. 23,” he said. “With the Next Gen cars, that doesn’t seem to be an issue. So I was trying to get my shape into one and I should have gave a little bit more space.”
Placing 31st and dropping from fourth to eighth in the Round of 12 Playoffs standings, the 22-time Cup race winner attributed the accident with pushing the boundaries in the waning moments at Texas.
“I don’t think it’s a byproduct of the car,” he said. “I think if I could just replay it again, I would just give more space into (Turn) 1 and race it out off the (Turn) 2 and eventually the bottom would have worn out. I was just trying to get it all too quickly and should’ve just worked for another corner.”
