CONCORD, N.C. -- It was a win for the record books after Kyle Larson took the checkered flag and Chase Elliott finished second at Kansas Speedway on Sunday.
The teammates earned Hendrick Motorsports' seventh 1-2 result this year, tying the organization with itself (2009) and Joe Gibbs Racing (2019) for the second-most top-two finishes in a single season.
It was the Hendrick Motorsports show for most of the race with Larson, Elliott and William Byron all trading off leading the field before a couple of late-race restarts allowed Larson to shoot out front and earn his ninth win this season and third in a row.
Larson's victory came on the 17th anniversary of the plane crash that took the lives of Ricky Hendrick, team owner Rick Hendrick son, and nine others, making the win even more special for the organization.
Fittingly, Larson won in Rick Hendrick's flagship No. 5 Chevrolet for the second NASCAR Cup Series Round of 8 event. The HendrickCars.com scheme is a tribute to Ricky Hendrick's look from when he raced.
"I want to dedicate this win to Rick and Linda (Hendrick)," Larson said. "I didn’t ever get to meet Ricky (Hendrick) or the other men and women who lost their lives that day, but I felt the importance of this race, no doubt. It’s crazy how it kind of all worked out there for me to win. I know they were all looking down and helping me out there with all the restarts and stuff after getting into the wall. Again, thank you to Rick Hendrick. I know this means a lot to you and I’m glad I could get it done."
Elliott's perfomance gave him a huge bump in the playoff standings and he now sits in second place. Byron finished the race sixth and Alex Bowman rounded out the Hendrick Motorsports brigade with an 11th-place finish.
Take a look below to see how the Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared at Kansas Speedway.
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 1st
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Larson started from the pole position at Kansas and remained out front for the first nine laps until rain brought out a red flag. The race resumed roughly 30 minutes later and Larson was in a battle for first. He took first place officially by lap 18 and was in that spot three laps later when the second yellow flag dropped.
- After taking four tires and fuel, Larson restarted in third place. He was back in first within three laps but lost the position to teammate Chase Elliott by lap 34. He slipped to third after William Byron passed him but soon was battle the No. 24 car for the lead. He took first place back on lap 38 and kept a short distance in front of Byron until the first stage ended.
- Larson pitted between stages and was first coming off pit road. He lost the lead to Elliott by lap 91 and settled in third place on lap 93. Larson was in that spot until he pitted on lap 123. He was in fourth by lap 127 and edged to third 20 laps later, which is how he finished stage two.
- The No. 5 pit crew performed a stellar stop between stages and Larson leapfrogged to the front off pit road. He and Byron again were jockeying each other for first place before Larson was pushed out front on lap 171 and was fighting for that spot when the fifth yellow flag came out. He opted to stay on the track and restarted second.
- The California native took no time to push out front and reclaim the lead. However, Byron took over the lead again and Larson was down to fifth by lap 190. When the sixth caution waved, Larson pitted for four tires and fuel. He was fifth when the race went green.
- Larson was up the third when the seventh caution was called. He remained on the track and was second when the race restarted. It took only one lap for Larson to take the lead and he stayed out front for the rest of the race to claim his ninth win this year.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 2nd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Elliott rolled off the grid fifth and slipped two spots to seventh when a flag waved for rain on lap nine. He worked his way up to fourth when racing resumed and edged to third on lap 20. Elliott was in that spot when the second yellow flag waved. He took four tires, fuel and returned to the track sixth.
- Elliott shot up to third within two laps of the restart and soon was battling with teammate William Byron for second place, eventually prevailing. Elliott then zoomed past teammate Kyle Larson on lap 34 to lead for a couple of laps before he fell to third by lap 37. Elliott remained steady in that spot until stage one ended.
- After pitted for four tires and fuel, Elliott began stage two in third place. He edged past Byron to second and was up to first by lap 89. Elliott and Larson soon were trading off the lead before Elliott secured it for good by lap 90. He pitted under green for four tires and fuel before returning to the track in fifth. It didn’t take long for Elliott to work his way to second and rode solidly in that position until Byron took the spot on lap 142. Elliott edged to second behind Byron four laps later and ended stage two in that position.
- Elliott lost a spot on pit road and restarted stage three in fourth. He fell to seventh by lap 170 and had edged back to sixth when the fifth caution came out. Elliott pitted under the yellow for two tires and fuel before returning to the track in third place. He fell to sixth by lap 182 but reclaimed two positions by lap 190. The 25-year-old driver headed to pit road for four tires and fuel and was third for the restart. He jumped out to the front and enjoyed a lap in the lead before the seventh caution was called.
- The Georgia native resumed his spot out front when the race restarted but was shuffled back to seventh with less than 40 laps to go. Elliott was back up to fourth by lap 234, took third place with 20 laps left in the race, then snagged second place six laps later. Despite some tire issues that slow down the No. 9 Chevrolet and caused him to tag the wall, Elliott maintained control of his Chevy and raced to a second-place finish.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 6th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Byron started ninth at Kansas and shot up to fifth before the race was halted due to rain. When the event resumed, Byron moved to third but lost momentum trying to shuffle in line. He dropped to fifth and was up to fourth when the second flag dropped.
- After taking four tires and fuel, Byron was seventh when racing resumed. He broke into the top five within two laps and shot up to second by lap 31. He lost that spot two laps later to teammate Chase Elliott but soon edged past Elliott for first and maintained the position for four laps. Byron slipped to second after Kyle Larson passed him for the lead. He remained hot on Larson’s tail through the rest of the first stage.
- Byron restarted the race in second place after pitting for tires and fuel and soon was battling Elliott for second place again. He slipped to third by lap 90 but took second place from Larson three laps later. He remained in that position until pitting under green on lap 123. When the field pitted and cycled out, Byron was back in third place. The 23-year-old driver took second from Elliott on lap 142 and assumed the lead four laps later, finishing stage two in first.
- Larson jumped Byron on pit road, pushing him to a second-place restart. He held strong against Larson as they fought for the lead spot. He slipped to fifth on lap 171 and was in that spot when a caution occurred three laps later. Byron pitted for four tires and fuel and was sixth when the race went green.
- He was fourth by lap 180 and third one lap later, taking that spot from Elliott. He was up to second by lap 185 and sidedrafted Larson to take over first place again. Byron pitted for fresh tires and fuel but had to return to pit road for the crew to tighten the lug nuts.
- The Charlotte, North Carolina, native was 14th when the race restarted and was up to 10th when the seventh yellow flag waved just a couple of circuits later. Byron restarted ninth and edged to seventh with 34 laps to go. He was sixth with 20 laps left and rode strong in that position until he crossed the finish line.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 11th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman took to the track 25th and zoomed to 16th within the first nine laps before rain stalled the race. Once racing resumed, Bowman continued to charge up the field and was 12th by lap 22 when the second flag waved. Bowman pitted for four tires and fuel, returning to the track 11th. The 28-year-old driver was eighth by lap 30 and was in that position until lap 73 when he edged to seventh. Bowman was in that spot when stage one ended.
- The driver of the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE began stage two in seventh and fell to eighth within a couple of laps. Bowman was back up to seventh by lap 102 and pitted under green 19 laps later. He was 11th when he returned to the track, edged to eighth by lap 127 and was seventh when the second stage ended.
- After pitting for tires and fuel, Bowman began stage three in eighth place. A caution allowed him to pit for fuel and four tires. Bowman restarted ninth and had trickled to 10th by lap 185, 11th by lap 191 and 12th by lap 208. He was back in 11th after the sixth caution came out and pitted with most of the field for adjustments.
- Bowman was eighth when the race went green and took advantage of the restart to gain a couple of positions. However, he slipped to 10th with 32 laps left in the race. Bowman was 11th by lap 251 and remained in that position for the final laps of the race.