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Kyle Larson and the Hendrick Motorsports drivers finished all within the top 10 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Las Vegas spring race marks a back-to-back top 10 finish for all four HMS drivers following a strong outing at Phoenix Raceway.
Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro, finished ninth in the Pennzoil 400. William Byron (#24) led the way for the Concord-based outfit in fourth, followed by Alex Bowman (#48) in seventh. Chase Elliott (#9) once again rounded the top 10.
Hendrick Motorsports posted the team result on X (formerly Twitter) and wrote:
"Fast cars, tough result. We'll see you in Miami."
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Kyle Larson, who started 10th, looked strong throughout the contest, leading the field for a race-high 61 laps. The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion finished fifth in stage one before winning stage two ahead of teammate William Byron.
However, Josh Berry prevailed in the end to score his maiden win in the series.
After five race weekends, Larson has three top-10s and two top-5s. He advanced five spots to rank sixth in the standings behind his Hendrick Motorsports teammates. William Byron is the top-seeded driver ahead of Christopher Bell. Chase Elliott sits fourth, followed by Alex Bowman in fifth.
The next race weekend will be held at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 23. FS1 will take over the broadcasting duties, which will commence at 3:00 p.m. ET.
Larson only won once at the 1.5-mile track during his second year with HMS in 2022.
"Race didn't play out in our strategy": Kyle Larson on dropping to 9th at Las Vegas
Despite a strong start to the Las Vegas spring race, Kyle Larson wasn't able to compete for the win in the end. He argued the cautions affected the No. 5 team's strategies and later settled with a ninth-place finish.
Speaking to Frontstretch via X, the 32-year-old Hendrick Motorsports star said:
"The cautions and the strategy didn't play out in our favor. I didn't get some good restarts in the last couple times. My balance wasn't as good as I was early in the race in traffic...I was great in traffic. The car was up to fifth in the first stage without a problem so I was hoping for more of that." (0:11 onwards)
Larson was upset with the result in the closing stages of the race but commended the team for bringing a fast car in Sin City.
"Bummer but super, super happy with the racecar we brought...I know we're really good here at Vegas typically but I feel like we're a little bit better than normal. Proud of the effort there, good pit stops, all that stuff... race just didn't play out in our strategy," he added. (0:36 onwards)
Kyle Larson earned 44 points (including one playoff point) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway due to the stage two win. He tied his best point finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway when he crossed the line third behind Carson Hocevar.
