What happened?
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Kyle Larson put on a clinic to win his third NASCAR Cup Series victory of 2022 over Ross Chastain and AJ Allmendinger at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday, Oct. 23. Austin Dillon and Brad Keselowski both finished behind them to round out the top five.
Larson’s victory guarantees the No. 5 team a spot in the Championship 4 in the Cup Series owner points battle when the series heads to Phoenix Raceway for the season finale.
How did it happen?
Pure domination.
The Larson seen on Sunday was the same one the NASCAR world watched win 10 races en route to a NASCAR Cup championship one year ago.
The Californian dirt racer took the lead early on lap 27 in the 267-lap event, and through late-race cautions, green flag pit stops and varying pit strategies, he still managed to win both stages and lead a whopping race-high 199 laps, the most led by anyone since Joey Logano led 222 laps at Richmond Raceway in August.
The performance came with its challenges, though.
Larson was leading easily in the final stage when the caution waved on lap 212 during what was meant to be the final green-flag pit stop cycle of the day.
The No. 5 had yet to pit during the cycle, which allowed Martin Truex Jr. and Chastain to take the front row on the ensuing restart as the Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet visited pit lane to change tires.
While dropping back for a moment, Larson quickly recovered once racing resumed. After clearing traffic, he found himself in second and chasing Truex down for the lead.
Will Kyle Larson catch and pass Martin Truex Jr.? #NASCAR
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 23, 2022
That was when one last caution flew with only 21 laps to go, forcing the field to pit one more time.
While there, Truex braked too late before heading into his pit box, and Larson tagged him from behind, sending the No. 19 careening into his own pit stall.
Martin Truex Jr. SPINS entering pit road!
He had help from Kyle Larson. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/enJPinUvxs
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 23, 2022
Truex took most of the blame, and Larson inherited the lead as a result.
With only 17 laps of racing left, Larson was on cruise control from there. He held off a hard-charging Chastain and Allmendinger on the way to his third win of 2022.
Who stood out?
Larson commanded the race lead from the near beginning, but at the end, it was the dueling Chastain and…
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