CONCORD, N.C. -- Kyle Larson did it again, winning his third NASCAR Cup Series points-paying race in a row by taking the checkered flag at Nashville Superspeedway.
Larson dominated the field the entire day by winning stage two and leading a whopping 264 laps, including the final 78. It marked a full-circle moment for Hendrick Motorsports, which won at Nashville Fairgrounds with Geoff Bodine in 1984. Bodine was driving the No. 5 Chevrolet when he started fifth and earned the organization's second overall win. History repeated itself Sunday when Larson started fifth and won at Nashville, earning team owner Rick Hendrick his 271st victory.
"I can’t say enough about everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, HendrickCars.com, Valvoline, and thanks to everybody who has been a part of this team this year," Larson said. "I just hope we can keep it going."
Larson now has four wins on the year, which ties his career high. The 28-year-old has not finished outside the top two since May 9 and has won the last two races on Father's Day (2017 and 2021).
William Byron finished third for his seventh top-five result this season. Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman rounded out the Hendrick Motorsports crew by placing 13th and 15th, respectively. However, Elliott was disqualified after the race due to loose lug nuts, moving Bowman's finishing position up to 14th.
Take a look below to see how the Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared in the first-ever Ally 400.
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 1st
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Larson rolled off the grid fifth. A caution immediately came out from an accident and he bumped up to third. After the restart, Larson threaded between the first two drivers and took the lead by the sixth lap. He didn’t relinquish first place until he pitted on lap 45.
- Larson restarted second after losing the lead on pit road. However, it took less than a lap for him to jump back out front. He pitted under the fourth caution and returned to the track in eighth. Larson finished the stage third.
- The Elk Grove, California, native claimed the lead for the start of stage two after staying out on the track. He maintained that position until another caution came out with less than 10 laps left in the stage. Larson restarted third and took the lead within two laps, earning his 12th stage win of the year.
- Larson stayed out front until another caution fell on lap 218. He pitted and was third when racing resumed. It didn’t take long for Larson to reclaim the lead and he maintained that position of the rest of the race, earning his third points-paying win in a row.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: Disqualified
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Elliott was sixth when the race began and tried to go three wide at the start. A caution came out and he restarted in the same position. By lap nine he dropped to eighth but edged back to sixth when the second caution occurred. After pitting, Elliott was fourth when racing resumed.
- He jumped to second after the third caution behind teammate Kyle Larson and was in that position when the fourth caution of the afternoon dropped. Elliott opted not to pit and stay out, taking the lead. He was declared the winner of stage one.
- The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE restarted 18th after pitting between stages one and two and had moved to 13th by lap 127. He was back in the top 10 after a caution caused a fourth restart, settling in ninth. Elliott finished stage two in a couple spots up in seventh.
- He started stage three with a bang and edged to fourth within a couple of laps. Elliott was third by lap 204 behind teammates Larson and William Byron and remained there until the 10th caution of the race.
- The 25-year-old driver restarted in eighth and edged to fourth with 66 laps to go. As the race started to wind down, Elliott began losing spots after saying his left-rear tire didn’t feel right. He fell out of the top 10 with less than 20 laps left and placed 13th. However, he was disqualified after the race due to loose lug nuts.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 3rd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Byron started the race fourth but had to drop to the rear due to inspection issues. He slowly started working his way up the slick track and was 22nd before he pitted on lap 44. He returned to the track in 23rd.
- Byron quickly broke into the top 20 after the restart and was 19th when a third yellow flag stalled the race on lap 55. He pitted for fuel, tires and a chassis adjustment before coming back out in 28th. Byron finished the first stage in 17th.
- The 23-year-old driver jumped to 11th for the start of the second stage and edged into the top 10 by lap 140, eventually taking seventh. Byron had a great restart after the fifth caution of the race before the end of stage two. He edged to fifth before the final lap and finished the stage in fourth.
- Byron decided not to pit between stages and restarted second behind teammate Kyle Larson. He stayed in that spot until a yellow flag fell on lap 218. Byron pitted and lost a spot on pit road, forcing him to restart fifth.
- The Charlotte, North Carolina, native made a bold move on the restart and threaded the second- and third-place drivers, reclaiming second. He slipped to third with seven laps to go after realizing he was low on fuel, holding off the drivers behind him and finishing in that position.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY NEON LIGHTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 14th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman started the Ally 400 eighth and dropped to 10th in the first lap after he followed teammate Chase Elliott to go three wide. A caution immediately occurred and Bowman was able to get his bearings. On the restart, he quickly moved to seventh.
- Bowman dropped out of the top 10 by lap 35 and was 11th when he pitted for fresh tires and fuel on lap 44. He was 16th when he came back out and had jumped to 11th when caution No. 3 came out.Bowman was 10th when racing resumed.
- The driver of the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet pitted during the fourth caution and received a speeding penalty on pit road. He restarted 28th and finished the stage in 25th.
- Bowman began stage two in 18th and slowly worked his way up into the top 15 over the course of the segment, eventually finishing the stage in 13th.
- He started stage three in the same spot and opted to pit under yellow on lap 199 for a chassis adjustment. Bowman was 20th when racing resumed and was 17th when the 10th caution came out. He weaved around that position for the rest of the race and finished 14th.