Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 5 driver Kyle Larson won NASCAR’s return to the Brickyard 400 after two overtime periods. Larson’s victory generated much controversy, and recently released SMT data provided some insight into the situation.
The Brickyard 400 went into overtime after Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch made contact three laps before the scheduled end of the race. Brad Keselowski was first on the inside line before the overtime restart. Ryan Blaney shared the front row with him, with Larson third. The No. 6 Ford ran out of gas and had to return to pit road, giving up the inside line to Kyle Larson on the restart. The green flag was waved while Keselowski was still refueling. Larson took advantage of the inside line and overtook Blaney, who was in first place. There was also some controversy over Larson’s jump start in the overtime.
New SMT data has been released that helps clear the air behind the Larson-Blanney controversy. Below is the data from a post on X (formerly Twitter) by CouchRacerShop. According to SMT data, Larson was in first gear and Blaney was in second gear before the overtime restart. In addition, Larson was on new tires, which allowed him to get off to a better start than the Team Penske driver.
Kyle Larson’s win at the Indianapolis oval was his fourth Cup race win of the season. He is one win away from winning all of NASCAR’s crown jewel events at the Daytona 500. Larson also overtook his HMS teammate Chase Elliott in the Drivers’ Championship, reclaiming the top spot with 749 points in the regular season.
“Just wanted him to run out of fuel”- Kyle Larson comments on Brad Keselowski’s pit stop
Kyle Larson took advantage of the No. 6 driver’s pit stop and drove to Victory Lane at IMS. Brad Keselowski’s pit strategy didn’t account for a late call in overtime, forcing the No. 6 driver to make an awkward stop. After all the controversy surrounding the incident, Larson shared his thoughts in an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. He said:
“It was obviously selfish. I pray we both run out of gas on the restart,” Larson said, laughing as he reflected on the race. “I didn’t care where he ran out of gas. I just wanted him to run out of gas so I could get the front row.”
Larson also shared his feelings about winning the historic Brickyard 400. “Everything that happened and the way the race went was just how it was meant to be and today felt like it was our day […] It felt like a dream come true when we finally got the starting position and I’m happy we did it.
We celebrated with family and friends and our race team, Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon. It was a pretty cool day,” Larson said. After the win, Larson is well on his way to becoming the regular season champion and has the most playoff points.
