Kyle Larson set up his teammate for the final 15 laps at Pocono on Saturday, making multiple runs to get by the No. 48 car before completing the pass in the waning moments of the race.
But this time he didn’t finish off the win.
Going for an unprecedented fifth NASCAR victory in a row, Larson blew a tire between turns 2 and 3 and watched from the cockpit as his teammate Alex Bowman sped away to take the win.
“I hate to win one that way, but hell yeah I’ll take it,” Bowman said after the race on the NBCSN broadcast.
Alex Bowman wins the first race of the Pocono doubleheader after Kyle Larson blows a tire on the final lap. #NASCAR #PoconoOrganicsCBD325
🎥 @NASCARonNBCpic.twitter.com/zGaeZS3zUB
— Always Race Day (@AlwaysRaceDay) June 26, 2021
Bowman originally took the lead through green flag pit stops during the final stage of the race by taking two tires instead of four like the rest of the field.
He even admitted to not running that good throughout the day during his frontstretch interview following the win.
It’s his third Cup Series victory of the season and comes just days after he signed a contract extension to stay in the Hendrick 48 for multiple years to come.
The win is also Hendrick Motorsports’ seventh victory in the Cup Series in a row, dating back to Bowman’s win at Dover.
The team will have a chance to sweep the weekend on Sunday, with the backend of the Pocono Raceway doubleheader scheduled to kick off at 2:30 p.m.
NASCAR Results
Pocono Organics CBD 325
1. Alex Bowman
2. Kyle Busch
3. William Byron
4. Denny Hamlin
5. Ryan Blaney
6. Kurt Busch
7. Joey Logano
8. Kevin Harvick
9. Kyle Larson
10. Brad Keselowski
11. Tyler Reddick
12. Chase Elliott
13. Daniel Suarez
14. Bubba Wallace
15. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
16. Aric Almirola
17. Christopher Bell
18. Martin Truex Jr.
19. Michael McDowell
20. Chris Buescher
21. Austin Dillon
22. Erik Jones
23. Ryan Preece
24. Chase Briscoe
25. Cody Ware
26. Anthony Alfredo
27. Justin Haley
28. James Davison
29. Garrett Smithley
30. BJ McLeod
31. Quin Houff
32. Matt DiBenedetto
33. Ross Chastain
34. Josh Bilicki
35. Timmy Hill
36. Corey LaJoie
37. Ryan Newman
38. Cole Custer
