Kyle Larson delivered an emotional and dominant performance at Bristol Motor Speedway, leading 411 of the 500 laps to secure his second NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season. The win came just days after the tragic passing of Jon Edwards, Hendrick Motorsports’ director of communications and Larson’s former PR representative, making the victory even more poignant.
“This one’s definitely for Jon,” Larson said, tapping a decal with Edwards’ name on it as he spoke to FS1’s Jamie Little. “He’s just a great guy here. We’re going to miss him. Wish he was going to be here with us to celebrate, but I know he’s celebrating with us in spirit.”
Larson’s flawless race at Bristol was a testament to his skill and determination, with the No. 5 team providing him with a car that was nearly unstoppable. Larson’s victory, which was also a bit of a revenge win after a tough weekend in Darlington, ended Denny Hamlin’s attempt at a three-race winning streak. Hamlin finished second, 2.250 seconds behind Larson, but praised his competitor for the dominant performance.
“You’ve got to give that team and Kyle his due for just a dominant performance,” Hamlin acknowledged. “Pretty flawless day for him. That was all I had to try to keep up there.”
The race had a somber backdrop as NASCAR mourned the losses of Jon Edwards, longtime journalist Al Pearce, and truck championship owner Shigeaki Hattori, who all passed away in the days leading up to the event. “This weekend we’re all thinking about Jon Edwards’ family, Al Pearce, Shigeaki Hattori. We’ve lost a lot of great people in our sport over this past week,” Hamlin shared.
Larson’s victory at Bristol also saw him dominate both stages of the race, adding to his already impressive record. The win came after an intense, high-paced race in which Larson was unchallenged for much of the day.
Ty Gibbs finished third, followed by Chase Briscoe and Ryan Blaney, who led 48 laps before a long-pitting strategy backfired in the final caution-free 235 laps.
Next up, NASCAR heads to Talladega Superspeedway for the next race on Sunday, April 27.