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Kyle Larson‘s win in Sunday’s YellaWood 500 is official after his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet cleared the Talladega post-race inspection with no issues. NASCAR is sending Riley Herbst‘s No. 35 Toyota, wrecked in the race’s last big crash, to its Research and Development Center for further evaluation.
Inspection at Talladega Superspeedway found nothing wrong with Larson’s car, so the win and the points that came with it stand. Larson leaves Talladega with a 73-point lead over Denny Hamlin in the Chase standings with two races left.
Herbst’s car headed to the R&D Center
RACER’s Kelly Crandall reported NASCAR’s decision to take Herbst’s car Sunday night.
https://x.com/KellyCrandall/status/2114497385879552229
Herbst was caught in the 15-car crash on Lap 183, the wreck that also flipped Joey Logano’s car onto its roof. Herbst’s 23XI Racing Toyota hit the outside wall, shot back across the track and hit the inside wall nearly head-on.
NASCAR uses its R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina, to study damage from major crashes. Taking a car there does not by itself mean NASCAR found a problem with it.
Herbst and Logano were both checked at the infield care center and released. Herbst left with his left wrist and forearm wrapped and a soft cast on his left hand. He said he was OK.
The finish NASCAR already reviewed
Separately, NASCAR reviewed Larson’s final-lap move along the double yellow line. Officials told The Athletic’s Jeff Gluck that Larson’s left-side tires were on the yellow line but never below it, so the pass was legal.
NASCAR also checked SMT data on the Chevrolets around Larson on the last lap. It told Gluck that Ricky Stenhouse Jr., William Byron and Cole Custer did not lift to help him. Byron finished second, 0.041 seconds back, and Stenhouse was third.
What’s next
The win was Larson’s first at Talladega. The Cup Series races next at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia, on Sunday, November 1, at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, and the season ends November 8 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.
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