NASCAR veteran reignites DVP debate after Kyle Larson’s wreck alters Darlington finish

NASCAR veteran Cliff Daniels has reignited the Damage Vehicle Policy (DVP) debate after Kyle Larson's race at Darlington. Larson was trailing the leader by 168 laps due to an early crash and when he rejoined the race, he was involved in an incident that brought out a caution that altered the race finish.

Without caution, Ryan Blaney would have likely won the race, but with the caution and pit stops that followed, Denny Hamlin won the race in the latter stages. But what was Kyle Larson doing out so late?

He was allowed to race due to a rule change this year. NASCAR created the Damage Vehicle Policy that allows teams to work on their cars. NASCAR can still retire the car if it feels the car is damaged beyond racing condition.

Daniels found this to be an excellent opportunity to learn about the pit cycles, different air pressure settings, and a couple of aspects related to the car's height.

NASCAR: Cliff Daniels - Source: Imagn

"The benefit of the way we handled our day, including trying to get back out and complete all the laps at the end, was almost a good dress rehearsal. If that did happen in the fall... we could probably cut our time in the garage by maybe up to 20 laps. The front clip wasn't hurt, the suspension wasn't hurt, the steering wasn't hurt, and nothing in the radiator was hurt. It was just the aluminum bumper bar. And that's a lot of work just to get one of those changed. So we learned all we could and tried to maximize our day," Cliff Daniels said (via Fox Sports).

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Denny Hamlin thanks Kyle Larson for his win at Darlington

Denny Hamlin bagged his 56th career win at the Goodyear 400 race at Darlington. Hamlin would probably not have won the race if Kyle Larson had not crashed and brought out a caution. Due to a good pitstop by Hamlin's pit crews, he finished in front of Ryan Blaney and won the race.

NASCAR: Denny Hamlin At Goodyear 400- Source: Imagn

Hamlin's car had a tribute livery for Carl Edwards for the "Throwback Weekend" at Darlington. Edwards waved the green flag at the end of the race, with the car finishing first, paying a tribute to him. Hamlin has won two consecutive races at Martinsville and Darlington.

I mean, there's two people I really love right now, my pit crew and Kyle Larson. So, we had a little assist there. So, thank you. But, the pit crew just did an amazing job, They won it last week, they won it this week," Denny Hamlin said. (via NASCAR on X)

With Larson's Crash at Darlington, Denny Hamlin was the one to gain while Ryan Blaney and William Byron ended up losing.