Kyle Larson holds off Joey Logano at Martinsville
Larson has 21 career wins in the NASCAR Cup series
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kyle Larson passed Joey Logano with 29 laps to go and went on to win his second Cup Series race of the season Sunday at Martinsville Speedway on a day when NASCAR welcomed back Chase Elliott.
Logano, who was forced to begin the race in the back of the field after his crew found a leak in his water tank prior to the start, finished second, followed by Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin.
Larson ended some frustration on a track that he said doesn’t suit his driving style, celebrating by doing a burnout on most of the half-mile, paperclip-shaped track.
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Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, takes the checkered flag to win the NASCAR Cup Series NOCO 400 at Martinsville Speedway on April 16, 2023 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
"I never thought I would be here," Larson said.
Logano said he tried to hold off Larson as long as he could but wasn't upset about finishing second.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}It was the 21st career Cup Series win for Larson and his 15th victory in the last three seasons.
Elliott, voted NASCAR’s most popular driver the last five years, finished 10th in his first race since breaking his leg in a snowboarding accident that forced him to miss six weeks.
Kyle Larson, driver of the #5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Cup Series NOCO 400 at Martinsville Speedway on April 16, 2023 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Because he’s so far behind in the points race, Elliott likely needs a victory to get into the playoffs. He qualified 24th for Sunday's race.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Polesitter Ryan Preece dominated early, leading the first 136 laps before a costly speeding penalty on pit row sent him to the back of the field. He never challenged again.
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After winning his first career Cup Series pole on Saturday, Preece added another first to resume when earned his first stage win. The 32-year-old Preece had led just 29 laps in his entire Cup racing career prior to Sunday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}TOUGH LUCK
Kevin Harvick, the winner of the second stage, was running near the front for most of the day until his right front tire went down due to a broken rim with 53 laps to go. Harvick had been seeking his 61st career Cup Series victory and first since last August.
NO HAIL MELON
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Realtree/Hunt Brothers Pizza Ford, Ross Chastain, driver of the #1 Unishippers Chevrolet, Chase Briscoe, driver of the #14 HighPoint.com Ford, and Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota, race during the NASCAR Cup Series NOCO 400 at Martinsville Speedway on April 16, 2023 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
The last time Ross Chastain was at Martinsville, he pulled off the "Hail Melon" move by slingshotting his way around the outside wall in turns three and four to vault past Denny Hamlin and secure a spot in NASCAR's "final four" round of the playoffs.
There was no video-game move this time around as NASCAR outlawed the move and Chastain wasn't much of a factor on Sunday, finishing 13th.
SUSPENSION COMING
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Two of Anthony Alfredo's crew members can expect two-race suspensions this week after the No. 78 Chevrolet lost a tire on the front stretch during the race with about 98 laps remaining.
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UP NEXT
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}NASCAR heads to Talladega next weekend for the first of two races at the 2.66-mile course. Chastain won the spring race there last season and Elliott captured the fall race.