Stepping into Pocono for the 2023 HighPoint.com 400 Cup Series race, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson was in for a roller coaster ride. Starting from P3 on the grid, Yung Money fought hard against Joey Logano for the stage one win but ranked second. As the race progressed into Stage 2, the HMS #5 driver spun out in front of the entire field on lap 46 after a rear bumper tap from Christopher Bell.
Rebounding from the setback, Kyle Larson then went on to win Stage 2. But Larson’s troubles were far from over as the final stage saw him tango with Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin. Speaking out regarding the incident, Larson has now sent out a warning to his JGR rival.
Kyle Larson warns Denny Hamlin of unfinished business
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Nearing the final laps of the HighPoint.com 400 race event, HMS #48 driver, Alex Bowman spun out while in the third position. With the incident warranting a restart, Kyle Larson led the field with Denny Hamlin on his inside. Approaching Turn 1, Hamlin attempted to overtake Larson.
Placing his #11 Toyota below the HMS Chevy, Denny Hamlin then proceeded to push Kyle Larson toward the outside wall. This caused Larson’s #5 Chevy to rub on the SAFER barrier as Hamlin stole the lead. Infuriated by the JGR driver’s action, Yung Money then bumped into Hamlin’s car while under caution.
In a post-race interview with Sirius XM’s Claire B. Lang, Kyle Larson said, “Yeah, I’m sure I have a lot to say. But now I’m just proud of my team. They did a really good job today to get ourselves in position to win after the spin. So, just happy about that and ready to move on and look forward to Grandview Speedway on Tuesday in Sprint Car and Richmond on Sunday.”
Claire Lang further questioned the HMS driver regarding his altercation with Denny Hamlin, to which Larson responded by sending a warning to his JGR rival. “Just ran me out of room…He won. I didn’t pay him back…Under yellow? No, I mean he still won, so I didn’t pay him back,” Yung Money said.
🗣️ "Just ran me out of room."@KyleLarsonRacin was obviously displeased with @dennyhamlin post-race @PoconoRaceway.@ClaireBLang caught up with him as he walked through the garage.
🤐 "He won. I didn't pay him back."@TeamHendrick | #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/bzoQFQHS86
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) July 24, 2023
While Kyle Larson sent out a warning to Denny Hamlin, the JGR driver, on the other hand, was in denial.
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Denny Hamlin denies running into Kyle Larson
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Having snatched the win from Kyle Larson in the final laps, Denny Hamlin drove down Pocono’s victory lane where he was met with loud booing from the angry Pocono crowd. Speaking regarding his final laps tango with Kyle Larson, Hamlin denied running into the HMS driver.
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Denny Hamlin ran Ross Chastain up toward the wall last year…
He's done it now with Kyle Larson, so Larson got him back! #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/LPrSv24OhN
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 23, 2023
“Both guys wrecked themselves. There was a lane. He missed the corner first, and evidently, he didn’t have his right-side tires clean and when he gassed it up he kept going again…I didn’t hit either one of them. I didn’t touch them,” Hamlin said.
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With Kyle Larson sending a warning to the JGR driver, Denny Hamlin will need to watch out for Larson in the upcoming races.