Rick Hendrick is one of the most respected and loved team owners in the NASCAR Cup Series. A tiny payback for the contribution that he has made to the sport came his way when he was announced as the honorary pace car driver for Sunday’s Brickyard 400. Turning laps around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Oval ended up being a memorable moment for him as Denny Hamlin made the affair more eventful.
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Talking to NASCAR after completing his duties in the pace car on Sunday, Hendrick revealed that Hamlin had bumped into him. He laughed, “I mean, I wasn’t ready for that, but I thought maybe that was going to happen. I’m paying attention to how fast I’m running, and I’m like, ‘We’ve got to run 45 (mph)’, and I mean, I felt like I was crawling, and all of a sudden – bang – and I looked in the mirror and it was Denny.”
Fortunately, the contact did not end up spinning Hendrick’s car. The 160-lap race that followed gave the team owner more reason to rejoice and celebrate. Kyle Larson ended up prevailing and brought home his team’s ninth victory of the year. Winning the Brickyard 400 exactly 30 years after Jeff Gordon won it for the first time left Hendrick feeling rather nostalgic.
Fans who were in attendance were overly joyed at cheering his name as he arrived to take part in the post-race celebrations. “I was just excited and hung out with them [the fans],” he said. “That might be the first time an owner ever did it, but it was fun. This is a special place. The oval is special. Thirty years ago we celebrated with Jeff. Hard to believe it’s been 30 years, but … this is a special place.”
Kyle Larson and Hendrick find redemption for foiled Indy 500 run
The last time Larson’s Camaro was clad in the paint scheme it wore on Sunday was in Charlotte during the Coca-Cola 600. The driver had taken hold of his ride after a subpar performance in the Indianapolis 500 but never got to race it due to bad weather cutting the event short. Those moments of reflection had been heartbreaking for the entire crew in the Hendrick garage.
The Brickyard 400 presented Larson and the team an opportunity to fill that gap in their hearts. Streaks of orange, blue, and white cut through the field at a blithering pace throughout the event as the No. 5 driver displayed incredible speed and skill.
His victory brought things full circle once again. Jeff Gordon reminisced emotionally, “I don’t know. I just feel like today, especially with that car, that paint scheme, the one that was going to run that day, just seemed to bring it all full circle, made it very special.”
