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Kyle Larson holds up the Ally 400 trophy at Nashville Superspeedway. (Photo: NKP)
(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2021 Ally 400 at Nashville

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What happened?

Kyle Larson won the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday (June 20) after another incredible performance for his third consecutive points-race win (fourth counting the All-Star Race). 

Ross Chastain, William Byron, Aric Almirola and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-five finishers.

How did it happen?

Pole sitter Almirola couldn’t hold off Kyle Busch through the first corner before a caution came out for Quin Houff, who lost a tire and slammed the outside wall.

The race restarted with Larson shooting the gap between Busch and Almirola, making it three-wide and clearing both drivers with a wild move.

Larson led until green flag pit stops began starting at lap 40. As Larson and Busch were on pit road, a caution came out for Tyler Reddick after he spun while exiting pit road too hot.

Busch passed Larson on pit road and held the lead for one lap after the restart before Larson used the air to get Busch out of shape and retake the spot. There was another quick caution when Ryan Blaney’s brakes failed and he slammed hard into the wall.

With 12 laps left in stage one, Justin Haley and Chris Buescher almost simultaneously hit the outside wall, ending both of their days.

Chase Elliott, who was running second, along with six others, stayed out while Larson pitted. Elliott held off Kurt Busch on the restart with five to go and won his second stage of the season. Elliott was later disqualified after five loose lug nuts were found, so the stage win went to Busch.

Larson got the lead after Elliott and Busch pitted, and he got comfortable there. He led until lap 132 when Bubba Wallace had a tire go down and spun out.

Cole Custer cut a right rear tire due to brake rotor issues with 12 to go in stage two. This time, everyone pitted. Chase Briscoe, Reddick and Austin Dillon took two tires while Larson and the other leaders took four. Larson passed Briscoe for the lead with four to go to win his 12th stage of the year. Briscoe and Dillon held onto solid positions to take home some valuable stage points.

Another brake rotor failed on lap 197 when Ryan Preece had trouble.

The next restart came with 98 to go, with Larson leading again after Byron nearly lost it and collected his teammate. The 10th caution of the race came with 83 to go when Wallace and Michael McDowell made contact, spinning out the No. 23. 

Everyone except Chastain pitted under this caution, hoping to stretch it on fuel for the rest of the race. Larson cleared Chastain on the restart before another caution with 73 to go when Briscoe suffered a similar fate as Blaney, Custer and Preece.

Chastain pitted under this caution, ensuring that he would have enough fuel for the finish while the rest of the leaders stayed out. Larson again held the lead over Byron and Elliott on the restart and pulled away to a comfortable advantage.

While Larson paced the field, Chastain charged through traffic all the way to second place with eight laps left. It wasn’t enough, however, as Larson held on to win while some drivers ran out of fuel (Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr.) and others had tire problems (Elliott).

The win was Larson’s fourth of the season (third straight), 10th of his career and fifth straight for Hendrick Motorsports.

Who stood out?

What else can I say about Larson? It’s gotten to the point where we’re running out of interesting ways to describe his performance. He led 264 of 300 laps at Nashville, the fifth time in the last seven races that he’s led the most laps. There weren’t many, if any, points in the race Sunday where Larson’s victory was in question. Elliott won stage one due to strategy and Larson was unchallenged on every restart despite the 11 cautions.

Larson now has 32 playoff points (four wins, 12 stage wins), which is 14 more than the next closest competitor (Truex with 18). Last season, Harvick and Hamlin seemed untouchable with all their playoff points. If Larson keeps up this current pace, he will quite literally be untouchable until the season finale.

Chastain keeps getting better to the point a non-superspeedway win before the end of the regular season is feasible. The No. 42 driver has three top 10s in his last four starts after two top 10s in his first 92 career starts. He’s also finished in the top 16 for eight of the last nine races. Chastain has been consistent at all different track types, as it seems Chip Ganassi Racing is reaping some of the benefits of Hendrick’s speed.

A win isn’t out of the question over the next nine races before the playoffs. Even if he can’t get one, Chastain is slowly creeping up toward the playoff bubble. He could need some help with poor runs by some drivers ahead of him, but it’s time to start looking at the No. 42 team as a serious threat to crash the playoff party.

After ragging on Stewart-Haas Racing all season, it’s finally time to give the organization some credit. We’ll start with the two drivers who finished inside the top five. Harvick had a typical 2021 day for him, running within the top 10 most of the race with flashes of good speed. He parlayed it into his best finish since Kansas Speedway back at the beginning of May. Almirola started on the pole and didn’t really leave the top 10 all afternoon. The No. 10 is finally looking like its old self after an ugly first few months of the season. Still, Almirola will need a win to make the playoffs.

Briscoe and Custer didn’t finish where they ran, but it was still a day to be excited about. Briscoe had the most solid run of his rookie season, getting to the front thanks to strategy before retaining track position and driving back up through the field again. Custer similarly had a solid qualifying run and was near the front until his brake issues hit. It’s a shame the same problem — one that was out of their control — struck the two young SHR drivers.

Who fell flat?

Truex is becoming a regular in this section after looking like the title favorite just a few short weeks ago. The No. 19 pitted in the final laps due to fuel concerns and finished 22nd, but that’s not the whole story. Truex almost wrecked in qualifying, had two pit road penalties and just generally didn’t show much speed all weekend.

Nashville was part of a troubling trend for Truex and Co. He’s finished 19th or worse in four of five races since his Darlington Raceway win while HMS dominates. Crew chief James Small can point to the fact that Truex’s three victories all came at key playoff tracks, but you have to get there in order for that to matter. In its current state, the No. 19 team isn’t scaring anyone. That could all change in the blink of an eye, but it’s definitely becoming notable. Pocono Raceway is one of Truex’s better tracks, so we’ll see how he does at the doubleheader next weekend before totally panicking.

Matt DiBenedetto missed a golden opportunity to close the gap in the playoff push. After Buescher wrecked early in the race, it seemed as though DiBenedetto would be able to gain a ton of points. He ran 10th in the first stage and appeared to have a respectable car before dropping a cylinder and limping home 24th. The No. 21 gained just 14 points on the No. 17 in a race where gaining at least 25 points was on the table. If DiBenedetto misses out on the playoffs by a handful of points or less, we’ll know what race to blame.

What did this race prove?

NASCAR should’ve done more testing at Nashville. There were more tire and brake failures on Sunday than I can remember seeing in some time. It was exciting to never really know what was going to happen, knowing that no one was truly safe. But it also seemed like an issue that could’ve been addressed had more testing gone into the track.

Fuel mileage races are fun — once in a while. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to see fuel mileage determining the race every week. Every so often, though, the thrill of not knowing who will make it and who won’t is intense. Nashville didn’t really see any contenders run out of fuel, but there was definitely concern for most drivers not named Larson. Stage racing has eliminated a lot of fuel mileage chances, so Sunday became a fun little throwback race.

The broadcast switch from FOX to NBC was a nice change of pace. I enjoyed FOX’s coverage this season, especially with Clint Bowyer’s presence reinvigorating Jeff Gordon. When NBC takes over the schedule, though, you know business is about to pick up. The playoffs are nearing and intensity is ramping up. I also felt as though NBC did a better job showing battles throughout the field, which were especially intense at Nashville. That could’ve been the case at previous tracks this season; it’s just not something FOX showed the audience much of.

Paint scheme of the race

Entering this weekend, I was fully prepared to drop Harvick’s Grave Digger scheme in this section and move along to the next one. Then, I saw Bowman’s Ally neon lights car on the track. While Harvick’s car was great, Bowman’s just popped from the moment I saw it in action.

Will we be back?

The second of four new tracks on the 2021 Cup schedule, Nashville should absolutely be back next season. Nashville is already confirmed on the schedule for the next three years, so the question is a bit irrelevant — I’m still going to ask it, though.

I’ll admit I had low expectations for the track after remembering what it was like in the NASCAR Xfinity and Truck series. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised all weekend long. The Xfinity and Cup races this weekend were ruled by a dominant driver, but there was great racing throughout the pack. Aside from side-by-side competition, the spectacle of NASCAR returning to Nashville was a shot in the arm the sport needed. The city is so full of life and you could feel the energy, regardless of where you watched from. Whether NASCAR continues to race at Nashville Superspeedway or moves back to the Nashville Fairgrounds, the sport has to stay in the city.

Playoff picture

Larson now stands alone atop the series with four victories. There are still five playoff spots open for non-winners, with three of those spots still very secure — Hamlin (+318), Harvick (+149) and Austin Dillon (+108).

The two drivers below Hamlin, Harvick and Dillon have also built a sizable cushion over 17th, albeit much less safe. Reddick (+49) and Buescher (+24) are sweating a little bit because a new winner could easily kick them out. Buescher’s race at Nashville also showed how quickly one bad week can narrow the gap, as he lost 24 points on the bubble in one day. Kurt Busch (-24), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (-43), DiBenedetto (-46) and Chastain (-50) are the closest drivers outside the playoffs.

Here’s a look at the full standings following Nashville.

What’s next?

Doubleheader events became somewhat normal last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, the only doubleheader of the season comes next weekend at Pocono Raceway. The first race (130 laps, 325 miles) is set for Saturday, June 26 at 3 p.m. ET, while the Explore the Pocono Mountains 350 (140 laps) will run Sunday, June 27 at 3:30 p.m. ET. Both races will be broadcast on NBCSN.

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