In a stark contrast to the finish of the 2024 spring race at Kansas Speedway, Kyle Larson dominated Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 at Kansas and beat Christopher Bell to the checkered flag by 0.712 seconds.
“Glad to not win by an inch here this time,” Larson told Fox Sports.
Larson led 221 of the race’s 267 laps — a record for the most laps led in a race at Kansas — swept the stages and recorded the fastest lap of the race, earning the maximum point total of 61.
Larson pulled away from the pack on the Lap 219 restart and never looked back. Despite a potential issue on the final lap, the lead Larson had built up was too much for runner-up Christopher Bell to overcome.
Bell, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe and Alex Bowman rounded out the top five, with Josh Berry, Ryan Preece, Chris Buescher, Joey Logano and John Hunter Nemechek completing the top 10.
Other notable finishers include Corey Heim in 13th, Chase Elliott in 15th, Tyler Reddick in 17th, Bubba Wallace in 33rd and Brad Keselowski in 37th.
Elliott was one of the few drivers able to challenge Larson, and even took the lead away from his Hendrick Motorsports teammate early in Stage 3. However, a slow pit stop from the No. 9 pit crew put Elliott back in traffic.
Keselowski was attempting to run down Elliott from the race lead when he suffered a flat right-rear tire on Lap 195, ending what could’ve been a much-needed good day for the struggling No. 6 team.
Meanwhile, Denny Hamlin suffered mechanical issues — specifically, a broken clutch — for the second week in a row, finishing 36th.
Larson’s third victory of the season and third at Kansas also put him in the lead in the points standings over his Hendrick Motorsports teammate in William Byron, who suffered a flat tire in Stage 1 and finished 24th.
While the next Cup Series points race isn’t until May 25 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the NASCAR All-Star Race will take place at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 18. The green flag for NASCAR’s All-Star event will fly shortly after 8 p.m. ET, with coverage on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
