Kyle Larson, who came back at the end of the race, wins at Homestead

For several years, the Florida oval has been a particularly good fit for Larson, given the line he needs to use to go as fast as possible. Over the years, the ideal line has shifted to the outside, almost against the wall. For Larson, who grew up on dirt ovals where the right-rear wheel is placed at the edge of the wall, this is perfectly natural. It was therefore not surprising to see him come back late in Sunday's race, passing the Toyota of Denny Hamlin and Bubba Wallace, before catching his teammate Bowman. It only took one mistake from the No. 48 for the No. 5 to take the lead and win for the first time this year.

"I knew coming back to these guys, they were going to start changing their lines and making mistakes.", explained the winner of the day. “I felt that if I could keep the pressure on Alex, he might make a mistake, and he hit the wall at that point. As a result, I passed him more easily than I expected. I still had to work hard, because the balance of my car was really oversteering in the fresh air. That was the case for everyone, but we managed it better, so congratulations to the whole team.”

With Sunday's victory, Larson came close to having the perfect weekend. Already the winner of Friday's Truck Series race, he finished fourth in the Xfinity Series (second division) on Saturday. Dominant in Florida, the driver, who will attempt his second Indy 500 in May, could have won all three races had it not been for a bump on the final restart of Saturday's race. However, the story could have been different if Ryan Blaney (Team Penske) hadn't blown his Ford's engine with sixty laps to go. The 2023 Cup Series champion explained there was nothing he could have done, as his Mustang showed no signs of wear.

“I didn't get any indication. When I got back on the gas on the backstretch, it was over. It sucks. I led a lot of laps, lost a little track position because of some pit road issues, but I came back to third, and it was a great race between me, Bubba, and Larson. I'm sure Denny was going to come back in the race. It was going to be a hell of a battle in the last 60 laps.”

La NASCAR heads next week to Martinsville, the smallest oval of the season, at 800 meters.

Homestead-Miami – Ranking

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