Rick Hendrick’s team’s outing at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday was not spectacular. Only Kyle Larson (fourth position) finished in the top ten among the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers. The others were caught in a passing storm, which threw off much of the race weekend’s schedule.
Chase Elliott began the race on pole position according to NASCAR’s qualifying system, after the time trials on Saturday were cancelled due to rain. He led the opening 41 laps and earned critical stage points. He finished third in the first stage and tenth in the second stage. Things took a dramatic turn in Lap 194, when he collided with Joey Logano during a restart.
The #9 Hendrick Motorsports crew was able to complete some swift repairs and maintain him on the lead lap. He finished the race in 18th place. Bowman also earned stage points after finishing 10th on stage 1.
His day ended prematurely on Lap 144 when his car developed engine problems (36th place, DNF). William Byron finished 26th after a rather uneventful race. His pursuit of a top-10 finish in the Magic Mile continues.
Kyle Larson saves the day for Rick Hendrick’s squad with an outstanding performance.
Larson finished in the top five at Loudon for the ninth time in 2024. He started the race in 19th place and eventually pushed his way up. He finished Stage 2 in seventh place, and the race was suspended in Lap 219. After a significant delay, it resumed with wet weather tires. Larson continued to take off leaders, eventually finishing fourth.
According to hendrickmotorsports.com, he remarked, “Yeah, it was fun [racing on a damp track]. I think that is why you see a lot of dirt racers kind of migrate to the front.” I just attempted to feel it out with caution. It wasn’t my greatest bet on the restart to go incredibly low, but it worked out and I was able to hold track position for the rest of the race, which I am proud of.”
He is currently tied with Elliott at the top of the points standings. Byron is in seventh place, with Bowman following in 12th. The teams will race together again at the Nashville Superspeedway next Sunday.
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