NASCAR
Kyle Larson Takes Hendrick No. 17 to COTA Xfinity Victory Lane
AUSTIN, TEXAS – For the first time in more than 15 years, Hendrick Motorsports won an Xfinity race. At the hands of Kyle Larson in the iconic No. 17, the powerhouse team grabs victory at COTA following last lap fireworks. While any win is special, seeing Ricky Hendrick’s colors find success with his car number is a highlight reel moment for many in the HMS family.
Both stages would be dominated by the Kaulig Racing duo of AJ Allmendinger and Shane van Gisbergen. The road course aces would short pit each stage however, handing the wins to Parker Kligerman and Riley Herbst.
The afternoon’s first incident would prove to be this race’s true turning point. After a caution flew for a stalled Ed Jones, Kyle Larson was one of very few to pit for fresh tires. Hendrick driver No. 17 gave up a top-10 position he had fought and clawed for all day. The past Cup champion had qualified on pole but was forced to start in the rear for unapproved adjustments. Now in overtime, Larson’s winning chances seemed fleeting.
The initial run at overtime would be very short lived, only lasting until turn 11. A major stack-up in the pack sent Riley Herbst around, and other cars clobbered the No. 98.
A second attempt at overtime saw Shane van Gisbergen still out front. Turn one however would see the No. 97 ran wide by Austin Hill. SVG got back to Hill’s bumper coming to the checkers, parting the seas ahead for Kyle Larson. While Hill and van Gisbergen both slowed, the Hendrick No. 17 stormed on by to a very emotional victory. Larson amazingly achieved a first in NASCAR, winning the pole, the race, and only leading one lap.
“This win feels really special,” Larson said. “Every time we’ve ran this No. 17 car with any of us four drivers, we’re always fastest on track until somehow giving it away. Today I was definitely not the fastest, but we were patient. I knew the 21 had shoved SVG through (turn) one, so I knew if he got to him, it could get dicey. I was just trying to be patient, thinking when to make my move. Thankfully I saw (SVG) shoot low through (turn) 15 to 16, and shove (Hill). I thought ‘ok, this could get good,’ and just thankfully I cleared them off of that corner. Pretty crazy but just wild there.”
“I thought when we pitted there would be more with us honestly. Then when they didn’t I thought getting back to the top-10 would be okay. It just all worked out. Happy that Greg (Ives, crew chief) listened to me, that my right front was shot there. I flat spotted it. Really cool, it’s awesome to win here at COTA.”
A last lap cut corner in the esses relegated a 30 second time penalty to van Gisbergen, sending him to a 27th-place finish. Behind Larson the top-five were: Austin Hill, John Hunter Nemechek, Cole Custer, and Parker Kligerman. Jesse Love, Austin Green, Chandler Smith, Sam Mayer, and AJ Allmendinger were the rest of the top-10.
The Xfinity Series will return to action at Richmond Raceway on Saturday. The Toyota Care 250 goes green at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. Kyle Larson will also have a chance at a COTA weekend sweep in Sunday’s Cup Series race from Austin.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Johnathan Bachman/Getty Images
