In Sunday’s race, both Larson and Hamlin made their last pit stops at the same time during the final part of the race. Larson managed to leave the pit road before Hamlin, taking the lead until a caution came up and changed things.
But Hamlin quickly took back the lead during the restart. Martin Truex Jr. bumped Larson from behind, causing him to lose his lead. After that, it became a close race between them, with Larson feeling like he had little chance to win.
Larson explained, “I went late in the zone. Martin was trying to time it behind me. He hit me right when I wanted to go. Screwed up. Got a lot of wheel spin.” He acknowledged that Hamlin was able to out-race him, especially on short runs.
The race ended with a long stretch of green flag laps. Larson tried hard to catch up in the final laps, but Hamlin’s skill in changing lanes on the track made it tough for Larson to pass him.
Larson said, “It’s so easy to air block. Not that he was doing anything dirty or anything like that. It’s just so easy as the leader, especially at a place like this, to shut off the air on the guys behind you.” He knew that once he got close to Hamlin, he would start moving around, making it hard for Larson to make a move.
Despite starting the race in 21st place, Larson showed impressive speed in his No. 5 car, climbing to fifth by the end of the first stage and winning the second stage over his teammate Alex Bowman.
“Another stage win sounds good. Good points day. We would have loved to get a win,” said Larson. He admitted to struggling on restarts at Dover in the past but remains determined to improve.
It was a strong performance from Larson, even though he couldn’t secure the win. He remains optimistic and focused on getting better in future races.
