Kyle Larson secured a victory in Sunday’s Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, a win that came under caution after he overtook Ryan Blaney on the final restart. Larson had already taken the white flag when NASCAR finally issued a caution for Ryan Preece’s immobilized car on the backstretch.
Preece had spun off Turn 2 on the second-to-last lap and hit the inside wall, but NASCAR delayed the caution for over 30 seconds while Preece struggled to get moving. By waiting until Larson started his final lap, NASCAR’s rules meant the race concluded under caution, avoiding an additional restart that would have been necessary if the caution had been called earlier.
This decision highlighted NASCAR’s flexible approach to caution calls. Race officials have shown their capability to quickly call a caution for minor incidents mid-race, but Sunday demonstrated their ability to delay when it suits the race’s context. The race was extended by seven laps beyond its scheduled 160 laps due to two late-race cautions. First, Kyle Busch crashed while competing with Denny Hamlin for a top-five position with under three laps remaining. Subsequently, a significant crash on the following restart eliminated five cars, including Hamlin’s, who had pitted for fuel.
These crashes led to a red flag, extending the race and pushing its broadcast to USA from NBC due to President Joe Biden’s announcement about not running for re-election. Larson had the fastest car in the final stages and didn’t need to conserve fuel. He moved toward the front after pitting during a lap 124 caution following Martin Truex Jr.’s crash. Larson was third when Busch crashed and was closing in on Brad Keselowski and Blaney for the lead.
Keselowski, attempting to stretch his fuel too far, did not pit after Busch’s crash, while other drivers, including Hamlin, pitted. Keselowski ran out of fuel as the field approached the green flag on the penultimate restart, allowing Larson to move up to the front row with Blaney. The race was then paused for over 15 minutes due to a five-car crash.
Upon resumption, Larson, with ample fuel, overtook Blaney into Turn 1. Tyler Reddick moved into second and had a slim chance of catching Larson on the final lap if the race had stayed green.
Earlier in May, Larson became the first NASCAR driver since Kurt Busch in 2014 to attempt both the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day. However, a speeding penalty in the Indy 500 dashed his hopes for a strong finish, and thunderstorms delayed his participation in the 600. As rain delayed the 600, Justin Allgaier started in Larson’s place, and Larson never raced in the Cup Series event. Despite missing the 600, NASCAR granted Larson a playoff waiver, ensuring his spot in the postseason. With four races remaining in the regular season, Larson is set to be the top seed in the playoffs, leading with 28 playoff points, ahead of Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin.
