Who… should you be talking about after the race?
He has 10 finishes outside the top 20 and five DNFs in 2024. He also has a Cup Series-leading six wins and 13 top fives, making 2024 a feast-or-famine type of season for Kyle Larson.
Sunday’s (Oct. 13) Bank of America ROVAL 400 was all feast for Larson, who led a race-high 61 laps to win at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL for the second time in his career.
Larson didn’t need the win to secure a spot in the next round of the playoffs, but it gives him some momentum heading to Las Vegas Motor Speedway — though after winning the last two races at LVMS, Larson might not have needed any.
How did Larson take the win on Sunday? He simply had the fastest car, and Larson has become an excellent road racer. Sometimes it really is that simple. Larson’s crew made solid pit calls and didn’t make mistakes, and Larson took it from there, celebrating with his daughter Audrey after taking the checkers.
The race had its share of drama with the playoff elimination and postrace disqualification of Larson’s teammate Alex Bowman, but Larson avoided all of it by simply outrunning it.
And don’t forget Tyler Reddick. Reddick, the regular season champion, had heavy contact with his car owner Denny Hamlin, which bent a toe link on the No. 45 and set Reddick below the playoff cut line and in danger of elimination.
In the final stage, Reddick was just six points behind two-time champion Joey Logano when the caution flew, and his team gambled on giving up track position for fresh tires, forcing Reddick to race his way back into contention from outside the top 20.
Reddick rose to the challenge with help from road racing specialists AJ Allmendinger and Shane van Gisbergen, who both passed Logano late. In the end, Reddick gained enough spots with his damaged car to squeeze into the Round of 8.
What… is the big question leaving this race in the rearview?
Another weekend, another round of questions about NASCAR’s race officiating. After multiple questions and complaints about the handling of the Damaged Vehicle Policy last week at Talladega Superspeedway (for the third time in the last month or so), NASCAR ignited more questions about its handling of races after Saturday’s (Oct. 12) Xfinity Series race.
As the field navigated the lap coming to the white flag, Leland Honeyman buried his No. 42 in a tire barrier as Parker Kligerman, driving for a small team in a must-win situation, led. It was obvious to anyone watching that Honeyman wasn’t going to be able to get out on his own and a caution was warranted.
To NASCAR’s credit, officials waited a few seconds to see if the No. 42 could roll. But they kept waiting … and waiting … and waiting, until Kligerman was literally feet from the line. Had he crossed before the yellow flag, the race would have been official. But the light came on when Kligerman was less than a car length away.
Had NASCAR thrown the flag as soon as it was apparent that the No. 42 was stuck — a good 15-20 seconds before it was thrown — or waited until Kligerman had crossed as it looked like they were attempting to do, it might not have caused the uproar it did. The caution itself was legit; it was the timing that raised eyebrows and ire.
So, after the last few weeks, does NASCAR have a credibility problem?
It’s absolutely starting to, and Sunday did nothing to dispel the notion after Bubba Wallace was penalized for cutting a chicane. The replay clearly showed William Byron committing the same violation just two cars behind Wallace but not getting a penalty call even after the broadcast showed that he had clearly put all four tires over the line that determines the call. The only ones who didn’t see it were in race control.
As long as there are humans making judgement calls in sports, there will be mistakes. NASCAR could go a long way with fans if it would simply admit that somebody flubbed a call and move on. But instead, someone speaks to the media with the excuse du jour.
Worse, some of the calls look like blatant favoritism to fans. Many commented Saturday that had a JR Motorsports or Joe Gibbs Racing car been leading, the caution would have been held the extra second. That’s not the case, but if fans think it is, there’s still a problem.
Sunday’s questionable call also had its accusations:
Again, probably not the case, but NASCAR can’t afford to make calls that are both wrong to begin with and which raise questions of favoritism. Going forward, calls need to be right, and when they aren’t, NASCAR should just own up and apologize.
Where… did the other key players wind up?
Pole winner van Gisbergen led the first 21 laps but was not able to get back to the front after his first pit stop. He suffered minor damage after being spun by Carson Hocevar, but was able to continue with minimal impact other than lost track positions. Van Gisbergen survived a second solo spin and finished a solid seventh, his second top 10 in 10 Cup starts this year.
Defending race winner Allmendinger didn’t get the repeat as playoff spoiler. Or at least, he didn’t play the spoiler by winning. But by passing Logano on the way to a sixth-place finish, Allmendinger did play a role in altering the Round of 8 lineup as his pass helped Reddick edge past Logano for the final spot (prior to Bowman’s disqualification).
Playoff bubble driver Chase Elliott entered the day 13 points to the good, and after starting seventh, kept himself in solid shape all day. Elliott didn’t have enough to take on teammate Larson, but plenty to finish the day in fifth and ease into the round of eight. He’ll enter the next round below the cut line, but for today, he got it done.
When… was the moment of truth?
Sunday’s race may have been smooth sailing for a few playoff hopefuls, but for others it was rough waters, with several title contenders having issues. For some, those ended their chances altogether. It didn’t end on the track, either, as the playoff drama carried over to the inspection shed.
Bowman, who had never finished outside the top 10 on the Charlotte ROVAL prior to Sunday, didn’t fare well in qualifying and then had a massive curb hop early, taking all four wheels of the No. 48 off the ground. He didn’t have visible damage, but the landing couldn’t have helped Bowman, who initially finished 18th.
He was subsequently disqualified for the car being underweight, which allowed Logano to advance after all, despite initially losing out to Reddick’s outstanding late run.
Bowman could still appeal, as there is some video evidence that something was dislodged from the No. 48 when he was doing his Dukes of Hazzard imitation, so the drama could well continue this week, meaning the last spot in the top eight might not be carved in stone just yet.
Why… should you be paying attention this week?
The Cup Series returns to Sin City and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Larson has won the last two races there, and with the next three races offering the respective winners a guaranteed trip to the title race at Phoenix Raceway in just four weeks, a third win in a row would have extra significance to Larson.
Las Vegas has been one of the less exciting intermediate tracks for the Next Gen, but its spot late in the playoffs could change that. A win would secure a position in the championship race for a playoff driver.
As for the drivers who missed the cut this year or who were already eliminated? It’s the perfect chance to prove they still know how to roll the dice.
How… does TV coverage change the complexion of the race?
Sunday’s race was a good example of how the television broadcast can affect how fans will perceive the race. The finish wasn’t exciting. Larson had the field covered and won by 1.5 seconds, a large enough margin that there was next to no chance for last-lap drama up front.
But instead of focusing the broadcast on the leader as Larson paced lap after lap, NBC focused on the battles that were exciting, in particular Reddick’s fight to stay in the playoffs and some other races for position.
Fans at home are always at a disadvantage. From the grandstands, spectators can see much more of the action throughout the field and focus on a favorite or two. At home, they’re at the mercy of the TV cameras, and all too often, that has meant watching the same couple of drivers lap after lap.
That’s a terrible call, because the racing behind that leader stinking up the show could be fantastic. But if people don’t see it, good races will be no different than boring ones to viewers at home.
Sunday’s broadcast was more balanced, showing multiple battles and storylines, even in the closing laps. That’s what fans need to see.
Amy is an 20-year veteran NASCAR writer and a six-time National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) writing award winner, including first place awards for both columns and race coverage. As well as serving as Photo Editor, Amy writes The Big 6 (Mondays) after every NASCAR Cup Series race. She can also be found working on her bi-weekly columns Holding A Pretty Wheel (Tuesdays) and Only Yesterday (Wednesdays). A New Hampshire native whose heart is in North Carolina, Amy’s work credits have extended everywhere from driver Kenny Wallace’s website to Athlon Sports. She can also be heard weekly as a panelist on the Hard Left Turn podcast that can be found on AccessWDUN.com's Around the Track page.
A couple things NBC needs to know. Showing several laps from the bumper cam on one car is useless for TV viewers. It does not give an overall view of what is happening, just 1 car. also, the ‘foot cam’ on road courses was fascinating when drivers had to use the clutch to shift, using the ‘heel and toe’ method. Using it to show someone pushing the gas and the brake is silly. just ans FYO.
Yes so true sb
be interesting to see if whatever came out of bowman’s car when he was on the turtles was enough weight to make him illegal.
i got a nap in during the race. larson checks out again.
I was thinking the same thing. If getting launched over the turtles caused Bowman’s car to lose something which made it underweight then it shouldn’t be any different than a car losing body parts due to hitting the wall, another car or shredding a tire which rips away part of the body. We’ve also seen non-body parts, such as bumper braces, cut off of a car. I am assuming many of those damaged cars are underweight at the end of the race also. I don’t see how this situation is any different.
The turtles were removed for Sunday’s event!
From previous article:
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The turtles on the frontstretch chicane have been removed as of Sunday morning.)
True, they did remove the taller turtles on the inside (right turn) of the front stretch chicane prior to Sunday’s event, however, Bowman launched (i.e. all four wheels off the ground) on the left turn exiting the front stretch chicane where it comes back out onto the actual oval. They didn’t change the turtles there.
they put shorter “turtles” in for sunday.
There looked like there were turtles on the track to me
This has nothing to do with the race but I’ve noticed something that’s happened after Larson has won I thought NASCAR would have addressed the first time it happened. At a previous win(not sure which one) his son rode on the windowsill of his car to the winner’s circle. Yesterday the same thing happened with his daughter so I assume he wasn’t told about it.I’m a long time NASCAR watcher and remember when crews would jump on the winner’s car and do the same thing back in the day. Look back and you’ll see what I’m talking about. NASCAR eventually put a stop to it due to the danger of it. Guess they don’t look at it as a safety issue now.Does this surprise anyone else?
Yes, it actually shocked me with his son and then yesterday I couldn’t believe Nascar didn’t bother addressing it after the first time.
It surprised me too when Owen did it and again yesterday when Andrea did it. I know Harvick has had Keelan ride inside the car, but I’m surprised Nascar hasn’t said something about kids on the window sill. Hmmm, I wonder if they said anything when Jimmie Johnson gave Mr. H a ride on the window sill after winning the 2012 all star race? That actually looked more dangerous because he had one leg in the car and one leg out of the car.
And yeah, so many crew members used to ride to victory lane that it would look like the car was completely down on the bump stops!
I agree. I was surprised when Larson did it a couple weeks ago and down right horrified when I saw him do it again with his daughter. The worse part was the idiot wasn’t even holding on to her. You could see him in one shot waving or gesturing with his left hand, instead of holding her. I had to look away after that.
While I don’t necessarily root for Larson, I have always admired his skill and talent, but I can’t give him much credit for being too bright.