CONCORD, N.C. -- A wild finish at Pocono Raceway on Sunday allowed Kyle Larson to claim his fifth runner-up finish of the season.
Larson was running fourth in the final laps when teammate William Byron relinquished the lead with two laps to go after he started to run out of fuel. Another driver ahead of Larson also encountered the same problem, allowing him to finish second.
Alex Bowman placed seventh after leading for nearly 20 laps in the third stage. Including his first-place result from Saturday's race, Bowman's average finish from the weekend's doubleheader was 3.5.
William Byron placed 12th after he was forced to pit toward the end of the race from being short on fuel and Chase Elliott finished 27th to round out the Hendrick Motorsports teammates.
Kyle Busch won the race.
Take a look below to see how the second race of the Pocono doubleheader shook out for the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers.
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 2nd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After finishing ninth in Saturday’s first race of the Pocono doubleheader, Larson was slated to start 12th but began the race from the rear after having to go to a backup car. He was 23rd when the first caution waved and finished stage one in 17th place.
- Larson started stage two in 33rd after pitting during the stage break. He started charging up the field and was 24th before he pitted again due to some damage on the nose of his car, returning to the track in 33rd. Larson was 20th 73 laps into the race and was strategic in picking off the field, eventually finishing stage two in eighth place.
- The 28-year-old driver pitted and returned to the track in 20th before the start of stage three. He returned to the top 10 by lap 110 and was up to fifth nine laps later. Larson jumped to second on the last lap of the race after two drivers in front of him pitted, allowing him to earn his seventh top-five result in the last eight races.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 27th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Elliott started ninth after the top-20 finishers from Saturday’s race saw their positions inverted for the start of Sunday’s race. He slipped to 13th when the first yellow flag dropped on the third lap. Elliott pitted with three laps left in stage one as a strategy move, ultimately ending the segment 32nd.
- He started ninth for the beginning of stage two, was up two positions by lap 37 and broke into the top five by lap 50. Elliott edged to third exactly halfway through the 140-lap event but pitted two laps later for tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. He worked his way back to eighth with 11 laps left in the stage and eventually was fifth by the stage break.
- Elliott restarted in the same position and was quick to move to third within a few laps. He dropped to fourth after the fourth restart of the race and almost got into an accident after the car in front of him got loose. Elliott recovered and was seventh with 40 laps to go, but he had to head to pit road shortly afterward with a flat front-right tire.
- The Dawsonville, Georgia, native was 28th when he came off pit road. He had to return to pit road a couple of laps later after the right-front tire went down again. He was 30th by the time he came back out on the track and finished the race 27th.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA ELECTROLIGHT COLOR OF THE YEAR CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 12th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Since he finished third in the first Pocono race, Byron rolled off the grid 18th for Sunday’s event. Within two laps he was up to 12th but fell to 17th after the restart from the first caution. Byron pitted with a couple of laps left in the stage, finishing the segment 33rd.
- He started stage two in sixth and soon moved up to fifth after the restart. By lap 45 Byron was up to third and edged to second a couple of laps later after the leader pitted. With 20 laps left in the stage, he pitted for fresh tires and fuel.
- Byron was 24th when he returned to the track and took over the top spot with less than 10 laps left in the stage. He won stage two for his second stage victory of the season.
- Byron restarted first and maintained the lead when the fourth caution came out on lap 92. He pitted under yellow for four fresh tires and was 28th when the green flag waved. Byron started charging up the field and was in the top 10 with 39 laps to go.
- The driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was fifth by lap 111 and second 10 laps later. He took over the lead with 20 laps to go but had to pit for a splash of fuel with two laps left. Byron returned to the track 16th and finished 12th.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 7th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman started 20th on Sunday after his epic last-lap win from Saturday’s Pocono event. He was up to 16th when the caution waved and Bowman’s lane got jammed up on the restart. Bowman was riding in 20th by lap 14 and eventually finished stage one up five spots in 15th.
- He began stage two in 17th and was in 10th by lap 51. Bowman broke into the top 10 before lap 50 and was third with 13 laps left in stage two. He pitted a lap later and ended the second stage in 12th after working his way back up the field.
- The Tucson, Arizona, native restarted eighth and was seventh when the fourth caution fell with 47 laps left. With some of the leaders pitting, Bowman jumped to second when the race restarted.
- On lap 97 Bowman took the lead and didn’t relinquish it until he pitted with 25 laps to go in the race. He was 19th after pitting and worked his way to seventh before the race ended.