'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Before Kyle Larson arrived in Michigan over the weekend, he had a controversial crash at Indianapolis Motor Speedway the previous weekend and never addressed the issue. During the event, Larson was among the fastest drivers coming from P22 to sit in the top ten in the first stage.
The second stage was tough, but it went from bad to worse in the third stage, with only 22 laps remaining to the checkered flag. Larson’s #5 Hendrick.com Camaro ZL1 seemed to have brake issues, and it came flying and landed on Austin Dillon's #42.
The two cars ended up in bad shape and were done for the day. Luckily, the two drivers escaped unhurt, though Dillon admitted it was one of the worst hits of his career. After the race, Hendrick Motorsport confirmed that the braking issue didn’t cause the wreck as people had thought.
After the race, Larson didn’t shed light on what went wrong and decided to keep it under wraps until last Saturday at Michigan International Speedway. Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Kyle Larson admitted that it was his fault that the crash happened, citing that he had just made a big mistake. He said:
“Obviously just made a big mistake. I got in there (to the corner) deep and I got out of shape. And I was hoping that by the time I got under control, I could go straight before they turned into the corner. And once I realized that I was going to hit the (No.) 47 (of Ricky Stenhouse Jr.), I tried to just do what I could to turn right and miss both of them. And that obviously didn’t happen”
On Monday, the two drivers had a healthy conversation and according to Dillon, he identified Larson’s mistake, but believes humans make mistakes. He was glad both of them were OK, and we won’t be seeing bad blood between them shortly. According to Larson, the mistake was embarrassing, but he is now focused on future races.
Kyle Larson's performance at Michigan International Speedway
After hitting Michigan International Speedway with a 35th finish, Kyle Larson worked his way up to claim his 12th top-ten finish in 24 races this season.
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion finished P7 after 200 laps, taking a third finish in Stage 2, but went on to have a pit penalty, stretching him to the rear of the field in the last stage. This eliminated him from the top-five contest, but he still got a chance to sit in the top ten.
Though he has managed to book an early spot in the playoffs, this season has been one of the roughest seasons for him, recording over five DNFs. Last year he was more dominant, carrying trophy after trophy, and many fans expected to see the same dominance this season. As we know, that did not turn out to be the case.
Having booked his playoff space, Kyle Larson will be looking to defend his 2021 championship.
