Kyle Larson’s recent performance at the Great American Getaway 400 at Pocono Raceway was marred by unanticipated problems, culminating in a 13th-place finish, partly influenced by a contentious pit road speeding penalty. Larson now trails Chase Elliott by three points after 21 races.
The Pocono pit road penalty, in particular, dealt a serious blow to Larson’s campaign. Larson regarded the punishment as an unexpected surprise, coming at a key point in the championship with only five races remaining. He stated, as reported by Essentially Sports:
“I am not sure yet. I’ll have to speak with, I think, the team. I believe it sounds like section 7 is different now than it was previously. It was a bummer because I didn’t push it. I didn’t push it beyond our limit. “I never imagined I’d be speeding.”
Larson described how the penalty affected his race plan and probable outcome, adding:
“So when they announced on the radio that we would be speeding, I was astonished. So, unfortunately, you don’t know how the race will play out. You’re going to restart the leader there; clean air is critical here. I’m not sure if I would have won, but I certainly would have ended higher than 13th. Unfortunately, it is what it is.
With the playoffs quickly approaching, each race and point becomes critical. The fines imposed, particularly in Section 7, have spurred conversations and conjecture within the NASCAR community concerning probable speed measurement difficulties, possibly indicating the need for broader technical recalibrations.
As Larson prepares to comeback, he keeps a close eye on his opponents, particularly the quietly emerging Tyler Reddick.
“[Reddick] has surprised me with where he is now because I believe he has just been quiet, which is unusual for Tyler Reddick.” I was startled because, before Chicago, I looked and said, ‘Man, he’s actually within reach.’ I’d been so focused on Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin for the last four or five weeks that I realized, ‘Wow, he might easily steal this thing.'”
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