Nascar – Kyle Larson winner of a crazy race in Charlotte

By signing his seventh victory of the season, Kyle Larson asserts himself as the big favorite for the title, but the scenario of tonight's race reminds us that nothing is set in stone before the checkered flag passes.

Nothing seemed to be going well for Larson at the start of the race when a battery charging problem was diagnosed. His team then achieved the feat of changing the battery and the alternator belt during a yellow flag, putting him back in the race for victory.

Chase Elliott will however see the finish © Getty Images

The last 15 laps of the race were contested in a particularly unbreathable atmosphere. Kyle Larson, after Denny Hamlin had to slow down, saw Tyler Reddick interfere, quite virilely, in the fight for victory. Although the latter was already eliminated from the playoffs, he bravely played his luck until the last meters of the race after having eliminated William Byron from the fight for qualification a few laps earlier.

Drivers Start your engines © Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Earlier in the race, the two best friends of the season Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott found themselves with 55 laps remaining. By sending Elliott into the wall, Harvick may have taken revenge for the Bristol race but above all he had seriously compromised his opponent's chances of qualifying.

The rear end of No. 9 is DESTROYED!@chaseelliott | #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/P3UzeDudlE

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 10, 2021

A succession of racing events, and excellent management of the yellow flags by Hendrick Motorsports to restore Elliott's badly damaged car to working order, nevertheless placed the latter back in the green zone.

In the middle of the pack, Brad Keselowski did his best to steal last place from Kevin Harvick but seemed to lose his last chances in an off-track excursion. This was without counting on an error from Harvick, certainly due to the presence of Elliott in his bumper, a few hundred meters later who sent the #4 Ford into the wall and out of the playoffs under the cheers of a public fully committed to Elliott's cause.

HARVICK GOES STRAIGHT INTO THE TURN 1 WALL. pic.twitter.com/aB78hjRIst

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 10, 2021

Despite this victory and Elliott's unexpected qualification, Hendrick Motorsports is the big loser of this "Round of 12" with the eliminations of William Byron and Alex Bowman. The Newman-Haas loses Kevin Harvick and the Joe Gibbs Racing Christopher Bell who can console himself with his excellent season.

Bank of America Roval 400 ranking

The eight drivers qualified for the Round of 8 (left to right): Ryan Blaney #12, Joey Logano #22, Chase Elliott #9, Kyle Larson #5, Denny Hamlin #11, Kyle Busch #18, Martin Truex Jr. #19 and Brad Keselowski #2.