After two tough weekends in a row, Kyle Larson hoped to turn his luck around at Dover International Speedway in Saturday’s 5-hour ENERGY 200. Despite fluctuating between tight and loose in the weekend’s lone practice session, Larson still felt that he had a solid car for the 200-lap race. After qualifying 17th at the Monster Mile, Larson quickly began working his way forward in the No. 32 LiftMaster Chevrolet Camaro. A strong strategy call by crew chief Trent Owens put Larson near the front and the Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender took it from there, earning his third second-place finish of the year.
In the only NASCAR Nationwide Series practice of the weekend on Friday afternoon, the No. 32 LiftMaster team worked to find the right balance on their Chevrolet Camaro after Larson reported that it was going from tight to loose and back again. On one run in the middle of the almost three-hour session, Larson received minor damage to the right rear of his Camaro after scraping the outside wall, but he quickly righted his LiftMaster Camaro and avoided further damage. After the team repaired the car, Larson finished practice in the 20th position. Despite not being that quick overall, Larson did score the third best average 10-lap speed, leading the LiftMaster team to believe they would have a strong car for the race.
After qualifying 17th in the No. 32 LiftMaster Camaro, Larson had a really strong start to the race and moved up to 14th by the end of the first lap. Larson slipped back to 15th, radioing to say that his tires were sliding in the corners, but the young driver had worked his way back to the 14th position when the first caution came out on lap 25 for a spin in Turn 2. Larson explained that his LiftMaster machine had started out tight in the race’s initial 10 laps, but it got better as the laps went on. While most of the leaders stayed out, crew chief Trent Owens made the call for Larson to come down pit road for two tires, fuel and an air-pressure adjustment. Larson restarted 14th and was scored in the 15th position when the second and final caution flag of the race waved on lap 35.
Larson and Owens discussed fuel strategy under the yellow flag, hoping to be able to make it to the checkered flag on just one more pit stop. Larson remained on the track while most of the leaders pitted and restarted fourth on lap 41. The 21-year-old had another strong restart, moving up to second. Larson fell back to fifth and explained that his car was really tight initially, but by lap 69, he radioed to say his LiftMaster Chevy was better, just a little tight in the center and off. Larson’s lap times continued to improve as the Elk Grove, Calif. native marched his way forward. Larson took over the second position on lap 87 and remained there until Owens called him in for a green-flag pit stop on lap 113. The LiftMaster team changed four tires, added fuel and made minor adjustments to their Chevrolet. After a solid pit stop by his Turner Scott Motorsports crew, Larson was scored in the second position after green-flag pit stops cycled through.
Larson slipped back to the third position on lap 130 and reported on lap 145 that his LiftMaster Chevrolet was a little loose into Turn 1. Owens urged Larson to start saving fuel on lap 160, as he had a half-lap lead on the fourth-place car. On lap 176, Larson moved into the second spot when the car in front of him had to pit. Owens continued to coach Larson to conserve his fuel as the race’s long green-flag run lasted to the checkered flag. After 200 laps at the Monster Mile, Larson crossed the finish line in second, earning his third runner-up finish of the season.
“Coming into Dover, I wasn’t really the biggest fan of this track,” said Larson. “I ran okay here in the past, but I didn’t enjoy racing it that much because I felt like the track didn’t change throughout the race. However, I had a lot more fun in this race. The track changed a lot and I was able to move around and try different lines, which makes it fun for the driver. Our car started off tight, but my team made solid adjustments and we were pretty good after our last pit stop. Trent (Owens, crew chief) made a really good call that put us in a great position, and we were able to bring home a really good finish for LiftMaster. Normally I don’t like finishing second, but after the last few weeks, I am really glad to be the runner up.”
The NASCAR Nationwide Series returns to action on Saturday, October 5 at Kansas Speedway, where Larson will make his debut at the 1.5-mile oval. The Kansas Lottery 300 will begin at 3:30 p.m. EDT, with live television coverage on ESPN. The race will also be broadcast live on MRN Radio and SiriusXM Satellite Radio, channel 90.
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