Kyle Larson’s Texas Dominance Cut Short After Rogue Wheel Drama Jeopardized Second Rick Hendrick Star’s Race

The troubles arrived in Texas for Kyle Larson during Stage 2, as the #5 Chevrolet’s right rear tire fell off around lap 117. Larson brought out the fifth caution of the race after securing a Stage 1 victory for Hendrick Motorsports. Everything was going well for him till he lost the tire, considering he even claimed the pole position for the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400.

Only a few laps prior, on 114, Carson Hocevar of Spire Motorsports spun his #77 Camaro Zl1 from the 23rd position on Turn 1. Halfway through the Texas race, Legacy Motor Club’s Jimmie Johnson warranted the first yellow of the 400-mile event.

Nevertheless, Larson’s tire problems are only one of the few on display as P2 qualifier Ty Gibbs had to pit twice in the first stage after a pit gun socket remained attached to the #54 Toyota’s wheel on the green-flag pit stop. Moreover, Larson is not the only HMS driver who has faced problems at the 1.5-mile racetrack on Sunday, as #48 Alex Bowman wrecked due to John Hunter Nemechek on lap 101, as a casualty of Christopher Bell spinning into the SAFER barriers off Turn 4. 

Funnily, Larson was unaware of his tire falling off the vehicle as he could be heard telling his pit crew that he had “a flat tire”. Larson had no tire and will face a two-lap penalty. At the onset of Stage 3, the #5 was awarded the free pass, but after battling hard, to break into the top-20 another misfortune plagued Larson with only a handful of laps to go.

Kyle Larson’s day turns from bad to worse

An incident off of Turns 1 and 2 involving the #5 team, Zane Smith and Ty Dillon brought out the 13th caution of the race, which sent Larson to the back again. What seemed like the race’s final restart, with teammate Chase Elliott and JGR’s Denny Hamlin tussling for the lead, led to even more last-lap incidents.

Notably on the last regulated lap, Hamlin spun out of contention for a third victory this season. This allowed the #9 team and its driver to finally break their 42-race winless streak  in overtime. And #24 William Byron rounded off the podium for Hendrick Motorsports with a P3 finish. Larson, classy as always, congratulated Elliott on his first-ever victory at Texas via Twitter.

Speaking to Bob Pockrass of FOX, after the race, Yung Money revealed his feelings after a tumultuous day in Texas. “At first I thought I had a flat… and then in the mirror I seen the wheel go, so…”  Aware of his potential dominance, however, Larson candidly continued, “Wasn’t too concerned, I knew we’d get back to the lead lap. Just, I dont know. I wasn’t that good, once we got to the lead lap. And then the strategy just didn’t work out for us there on that long green flag run. Some days it’s just not meant to be, but my car is really fast I think. Had we not had that wheel issue, we would’ve been up in the top 2 all race long.”

Next week, the #5 team will be vying to improve on its misfortunes at a Superspeedway. Not just any Superspeedway, but the historic Talladega Superspeedway. In his glorious Cup Series career spanning over a decade with 16 wins and the 2021 championship, Larson is yet to win at the 2.66-mile drafting track. With the Texas disappointments now in the past, a motivated Larson will certainly make the most of this season’s latest challenge on April 21.