Kyle Petty Predicts Tough Times Ahead for Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin

Rahul Ahluwalia | 10/09/2024
Donnie Allison (l) and Kyle Petty talk to the fans in the Talladega Garage Experience before the running of the Monster Energy NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series 1000Bulbs.com 500 race on October 13, 2019 at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama.

The first race of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs has seen a major upset for the usual championship favorites this season as the sport gets on its way to decide a champion this year.

The 2024 Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway saw two championship favorites in the form of Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin falter concerning their rivals, some of whom were touted as wildcard entries into the postseason.

While Larson’s day at the superspeedway-style 1.5-mile-long track ended prematurely with a crash for the #5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 driver, Hamlin’s confusing strategic choices left the Virginia native with neither a successful points bid nor a chance at winning the event outright.

Former Cup Series driver turned analyst and broadcaster Kyle Petty elaborated on what he expected out of the two drivers last Sunday, and what ended up happening for the two with respect to their playoff standings.

“We saw the #5 car, Kyle Larson seemingly running all by himself, that thing steps out, he’s in the wall. He loses 20 points. And then we have Denny Hamlin. I don’t know what happened to Denny. I don’t know what he’s trying to do. Their strategy did not work yesterday and they lose eight points,” said Petty.

With both drivers virtually expected to qualify into the hunt for the championship this year with their Final 4 appearances, both Larson and Hamlin sit at +15 and +2 points above the cutoff line heading into the remaining two races of the Round of 16.

“These guys have worked themselves into a hole. And for me these were three of the guys I had possibly going to the Final 4, definitely the Final 8,” concluded Petty, also including how Martin Truex Jr.’s DNF during the event also put him into the same boat as Hamlin and Larson.

Considering their starting positions in terms of points before the event in Atlanta, both drivers cannot afford to make any further mistakes headed into Watkins Glen and Bristol over the next two weeks, especially after being jumped by drivers such as Alex Bowman and Daniel Suarez, who are not expected to challenge for the title with the same gusto as their peers.

Meanwhile, Team Penske’s Joey Logano once again made the most of his opportunities and the #22 crew turned up into victory lane at just the right time as the postseason started last Sunday.

The two time Cup Series champion has guaranteed his spot in the next round of the playoffs by winning the 400-mile-long event at Atlanta. Now Logano and his crew need not fret over their qualification into the next round and can work towards improving their chances at the upcoming Round of 12 events.

Post Edited By: Srijan Mandal
Denny Hamlin Kyle Larson Kyle Petty NASCAR Cup Series

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Rahul Ahluwalia

Rahul Ahluwalia is a NASCAR Content Strategist and Journalist at The SportsRush. Hailing from a Journalism and Mass Communication background, Rahul's love for automobiles transformed into his passion for all things racing. With over 1200+ articles under his belt covering a mixture of NASCAR and F1, he has realized his calling in the world of motorsports with actual first hand experience behind the wheel to back it up. He has competed in several autocross events as well as rallycross-style competitions to hone his skills behind the wheel and better understand the mindset of a racecar driver, allowing him to further improve his writing as well. He also has an editorial background with respect to racing and has eye for stories which otherwise go unnoticed. Rahul is also an avid sim racer indulging in various disciplines such as rallying and oval racing during his free time. Having begun his motorsports journey at the start of 2020, he turned his passion into his work allowing him to delve deeper into the ever evolving and world of cars and motorsports. Apart from racing, Rahul also has sound technical knowledge of the automotive industry and automobiles in general. Having grown up playing video games such as Need for Speed, Forza Motorsport and Gran Turismo, it is easy to see where the love for racing and machines inculcated in the first place.

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