At North Wilkesboro, Kyle Larson aimed to defend his win in the $1 million NASCAR All-Star Race. The historic track echoed with anticipation as fans awaited the showdown. Larson’s mastery of the high-banked oval was evident, and he sought to match Jimmie Johnson’s record of four All-Star Race victories.
Kyle Larson’s dramatic entrance at the NASCAR All-Star Race via helicopter was a sight to behold. Fresh from his qualifying performance at the Indianapolis 500, Larson threaded a tight timing window to arrive at North Wilkesboro Speedway for Sunday night’s main event.
🚨 @KyleLarsonRacin has made it to @NWBSpeedway! pic.twitter.com/hpVSQYilbX
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) May 19, 2024
After securing the fifth starting spot for the Indy 500, Larson wasted no time. He hopped into a Bell 429 helicopter, accompanied by his wife Katelyn and Hendrick Motorsports vice-chairman Jeff Gordon. The chopper whisked them away to North Wilkesboro Speedway, where the NASCAR All-Star Race awaited.
Who would have driven the #5 car if Kyle Larson had not arrived on time?
Chad Knaus, Hendrick Motorsports’ Vice President of Competition, revealed that if Kyle Larson hadn’t arrived in time, the No. 5 team would not have participated in the All-Star Race. The team even considered substituting Xfinity Series regular Justin Allgaier, but that plan was ultimately scrapped. All eyes were on Larson as he touched down at North Wilkesboro, ready to tackle the high-banked oval and continue his racing odyssey.
“It’s going to sit there and look pretty. We’ll save it for another event,” Knaus said about the team potentially withdrawing if Larson did not arrive in time. “… The way things are working out, all of our cards are in getting Kyle here, and that’s the plan. To put Justin in and have him run the Open, we went down that road, we thought about it, we spoke with NASCAR,
He continued, “We came to a collective decision, that’s not the best route for all of us. We get pretty messy pretty quickly. Where is it fair? Is it fair to the people that are in the Open or not fair to the people in the All-Star. All of that stuff just gets kind of crazy, so better off just to make sure that our helicopters, our planes light off and we get him on the ground, and we get him on a golf cart and get him here.”
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