Race fans were left gaping and baffled at the recently unfolded Sonoma race. Speedway Motorsports LLC recently repaved the 1.99-mile road course. Bidding adieu to the earlier worn-out track and high tire wear completely changed the narrative in the 2024 race. The staggeringly high number of cautions proved that nothing went according to plan for drivers.

Many drivers were thrown out of contention due to technical issues. The repaving quirks did not play in their favor, and they nursed their battered car wounds. However, the change did wonders for others like Kyle Larson. Although the Hendrick driver claimed his team was totally clueless, his crew chief let slip a crucial plan of action that they followed.

Kyle Larson’s team member divulges a winning secret

The newly paved asphalt and a new set of barriers turned Sonoma Raceway into a treacherous racetrack. Drivers like Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, and Chase Briscoe all bore the brunt of this factor. Martin Truex Jr worked on an initial slip-up, only to get his ambition axed by a pit strategy fail. The sheer number of cautions may have muddled with drivers’ heads. Yet Hendrick Motorsports‘ No. 5 team was unfazed.

Kyle Larson’s crew chief, Cliff Daniels, explained in a post-race interview their secret weapon for steering clear of the chaos. He said they focused on the right issues. “It was so unexpected for us. None of our conversations hinged on how many cautions we were going to get. It was all you know, with the repave. Do you get tire blisters? You know, do your tires go 15 laps or do they go 30 laps?”

Kyle Larson significantly made the last pit stop for the race, while his rivals had pitted earlier. So with 13-lap fresher tires, he could run down Chris Buescher and Martin Truex Jr with ease. Daniels emphasized the tire factor: “The unknowns were more on the tire side of things. And knowing how to strategize on that two-stop or three-stop really for the whole day…Do you short both stages, and you know, pin on the field number in stage three? Do you try to hit the true fuel numbers to stop the whole race?”

This victory ties Kyle Larson with Denny Hamlin and William Byron for most wins. Plus, after his Double heartbreak, Larson proudly reclaimed his points lead. Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota suffered an engine issue just two laps into the race. He finished a disappointing 38th place, passing the championship lead to Larson in the process.

Contrary to his crew chief’s certainty, Kyle Larson had little clue about race strategy. He confessed post-race: “I didn’t know what we were doing as far as strategy. I was just out there banging laps away.” Indeed, the caution-riddled race numbed out everybody’s plans. But the No. 5 team enjoyed tackling this ordeal.

Crew chief admits to having ‘fun’

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One thing is certain, SMI’s repaving can bring out the strangest consequences. While mostly attracting negative opinions from drivers, this time the top NASCAR Cup team hailed SMI’s newest project. Before the Toyota Mart 350 reached its halfway point, seven yellow flags had already flown. Officials called nine cautions total, more than the previous two Sonoma races had combined. It also tied the track record for most cautions in a single race first, tying with the 1990 race.

This situation shuffled the field’s race strategies and the No. 5 crew chief relished that chaotic situation. Cliff Daniels admitted to the press after Kyle Larson’s win: “That was actually fun because it changed everything that everybody had in their mindset for how to understand pace, fall-off, all those things. It just changed the factors that you had to change for. People could do things differently. We were completely off-script with the way that we called the race. That was fun.”

Hence, the HMS team mostly relied on their expert instincts and snatched the checkered flag in a resounding victory. However, as Cliff Daniels shared, a little race strategy did pave the way for them.