Round 1, Fight! Larson Loses Tire, Bowman Prevails in Race 1 at Pocono!

The NASCAR Cup Series returns to the Tricky Triangle in a big way with a massive flock of fans arriving to the track after not being able to attend last year’s Doubleheader event due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The first race being a 325 mile race with 130 laps and the stages being 25-52-53. Kyle Larson is coming off with winning the last three Cup races at Sonoma, the All Star Race at Texas and the inaugural Cup race at Nashville Superspeedway. Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick, last season’s winners of the Doubleheader, have yet to win a race in 2021. Hamlin sits at 348 points to the good and is the best running driver to not have a win, as he is fighting for the regular season title against Kyle Larson. Kevin Harvick is right behind Hamlin being 148 points to the good. Chris Buescher currently has the last spot in the playoffs, being 24 points to the good.

It’s an all Hendrick Motorsports front row as Kyle Larson is on the pole with William Byron starting in 2^nd as the green flag waved on Round 1 at Pocono. Joey Logano quickly moved to 2^nd and Ross Chastain looking to pick up where he left off at Nashville as he goes for 3^rd. Chase Elliott received a ton of damage on his left rear thanks to contact from the #37 of Ryan Preece right at the start. Elliott started near the rear due to his finish being disqualified at Nashville. On lap 5, William Byron charged by Kyle Larson to take the lead, looking for his 2^nd win of 2021. A caution came out on lap 9 due to debris, this also ended up being the scheduled competition caution. The race resumed on lap 13 with Joey Logano and William Byron up front. Byron was able to pull ahead for the lead as Kyle Busch pushed his way to 3^rd by Joey Logano. Kevin Harvick also followed suit and takes 4^th. As they came back around, we had our first wreck of the race involving the #41 Haas Ford of Cole Custer. Brad Keselowski made a diving move to the inside and tagged Custer, causing the #41 to be sent into the wall, ending his day early and will have to use the backup car for the 2^nd race tomorrow. A simple miscue between both drivers. Keselowski ended up pitting to fix some damage on the front of the car. The race resumed with 8 laps left in stage one on lap 18. Byron and Kyle Busch were side by side heading into turn 1, but Byron keeps the lead for a moment. Then Kyle Busch took the lead coming off of turn 2, similar to how Byron took the lead from Larson earlier. Alex Bowman, Aric Almirola and Christopher Bell pit before the end of the stage now fighting to stay on the lead lap as Busch chased them down. Kyle Busch goes on to take stage one at Pocono.

Stage 1 Results:

1. Kyle Busch
2. William Byron
3. Kyle Larson
4. Joey Logano
5. Kevin Harvick
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Kurt Busch
8. Daniel Suarez
9. Austin Dillon
10. Tyler Reddick

After pit stops, Joey Logano and Tyler Reddick led the field to the green flag, with some drivers not pitting as stage 2 begun on Lap 30. Reddick dropped back as the two Ganassi cars moved up behind Logano. All eyes remain on the Kyle and Kyle Show with Larson and Busch working their way thru traffic after 12 cars didn’t pit during the stage break. Kyle Busch had some frustrations with teammate Denny Hamlin, to a point where went into “Will Power” mode, asking his spotter, Chris Lambert, to give Hamlin the “double-bird.” On lap 45, Logano and Kurt Busch, who were 1^st and 2^nd, went to pit as expected. Logano wants to make this race a two-stop race. The 4^th caution comes out on lap 53 with the #6 Ford of Ryan Newman spinning off of turn 1 and slamming into the wall. Newman does keep going, despite having heavy damage. Ross Chastain was the leader at the time of the caution. William Byron looked for track position and took two tires as others took four during pit stops. Byron came off first, gaining seven positions. The Busch brothers were out in front as the race resumed on lap 58, with 20 laps remaining in stage 2. Kyle Busch got the lead with Kurt 2^nd and Michael McDowell 3^rd. Caution comes out again shortly after with Corey Lajoie spinning on the front stretch after making contact with Anthony Alfredo. We try again with 14 laps left in stage two (lap 64) as Kyle Busch continues to lead with his brother Kurt in 2^nd. Ricky Stenhouse Jr got a restart violation as well, who was running in 17^th on the restart. Heartbreak for Ross Chastain with six laps left in Stage 2, he slams into the wall bringing out the sixth caution as he also spins the car around coming back to pit road. Kyle Busch would end up pitting under caution as his last stop came on lap 27, feeling the car being just a bit tight. We will get a Green-White-Checkered finish for the end of Stage 2, William Byron and Kurt Busch lead the field to a two lap sprint. Ryan Blaney makes it three wide, trying to gain positions as Kurt Busch pulls away with the lead. Kyle Larson chases down Joey Logano for 2^nd as Kurt Busch will take stage 2.n

Stage 2 Results:

1. Kurt Busch
2. Kyle Larson
3. Joey Logano
4. William Byron
5. Ryan Blaney
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Martin Truex Jr
8. Alex Bowman
9. Kyle Busch
10. Brad Keselowski

After pit stops, William Byron takes advantage of the choose rule and will be up front on the restart along side with Kurt Busch as the race resumed on lap 82, with 49 laps to go. Kyle Larson worked his way to 2^nd as Kurt Busch holds on to the lead. It did not last long, as on lap 84, Kyle Larson took the lead, Kurt tries fighting back but Larson had the upper hand. Drivers reached the pit window with 40 laps to go and it was time to play out the right strategy to win. Kevin Harvick being a notable one, he took fuel only. Matt DiBenedetto was penalized for removing equipment from the pit box. Larson and Kyle Busch continued to battle as they worked their way back up through the field with under 30 laps to go. Michael McDowell lead with Chris Buescher in 2^nd even though they had to pit. The caution then came out with 23 to go thanks to debris on the track. McDowell and Buescher among those who hadn’t pit yet all come down for service. Kyle Busch and Alex Bowman led the field to the green with 19 laps to go. Alex Bowman pulled away with the lead, throwing his name into the mix and he had taken advantage of the choose rule. Kyle Larson settles into 2^nd and Kyle Busch 3^rd. With 15 to go, Bowman and Larson have pulled away but Larson was right behind Bowman for the win. In the final 10 laps it was a thrilling fight for the win between Alex Bowman and Kyle Larson, both Hendrick Motorsports machines. With four to go, Kyle Larson used the side draft to finally pass his teammate for the win. In the end, there is no stopping Kyle Larson and he goes on to win Race 1 of the Pocono Doubleheader- WAIT A MINUTE!! Larson had a flat tire going into turn three! Alex Bowman will take the win instead with heartbreak for Larson who finished 9^th! A huge shock that no one would’ve expected. Bowman gets his third win of his breakout season. All Bowman could say was, “I don’t know what to think!”

Looking at the playoff standings, Kurt Busch now moves into the final spot in the playoffs. Chris Buescher, who will start from the pole on race two, is the first one out. Larson is still on top of the playoff standings. A crazy end to the first race of the doubleheader and guess what? We do it again tomorrow, stay tuned…