Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin collided on lap 221 of the Iowa Corn 350, spinning the former’s Chevrolet Camaro and relegating him to 34th place.
However, Larson gave the Joe Gibbs Racing driver the benefit of the doubt. Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, and Daniel Suarez were running three-wide around turn four. Suarez’s #99 nosed Larson’s #5, causing the latter to spin out.
Denny Hamlin was trailing them and had little time to avoid Larson or apply the brakes.
Larson reflected on the incident, telling journalist Bob Pockrass,
“We lapped him (Denny Hamlin), and then he just slightly came in the rear of me and got me out of the racetrack. I doubt it was intentional; I wouldn’t see why it would be intentional.”
Kyle Larson opined that taking the middle lane, especially when his car was the fastest in the qualifyings, might not have been the best decision. Larson, who was also the pole sitter for the race, knew he had room to pass Suarez and Keselowski without going three-wide and therefore concluded that he should have been a bit patient.
“I could have not gone to the middle and been more patient knowing how fast my car was and knowing who I was around, Larson told Pockrass. “I had room. I mean I made it to the exit of the corner and I’m not sure if Suarez got loose underneath me or what happened. But he got into my left-rear and got me out of control.”
Unfortunately, the Chevy icon lost the points lead after the 16th race of the season. Currently, he sits second on the leaderboard and eighth points behind his Hendrick Motorsports teammate and 2020 Cup Series champion, Chase Elliott.
Kyle Larson lets go of his initial frustration with Denny Hamlin
After the race was over, Kyle Larson didn’t blame Hamlin for the contact after all. However, he was furious at Hamlin when the incident took place.
When the contact happened, Larson radioed, as reported by another renowned journalist, Jeff Gluck:
“What the f**k was that for?”
Larson later said that his words came out of frustration.
“I was just frustrated but moved on from that,” the 31-year-old said.
As reported by Pockrass, Larson’s crew chief Cliff Daniels had asked the driver to let it go as the latter had the fastest car on the field. Larson also had the opportunity to record back-to-back wins following his victory at Sonoma last week.
The HMS driver could also have become the first to amass four wins in this season’s Cup Series. Nevertheless, he lost both chances and now looks forward to the USA TODAY 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 23.
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