By Zach Arnold

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kyle Larson earned his first-ever victory on the 2.28-mile road course by leading over half the race, a total of 62 laps. This marked Larson’s sixth win in the 2024 campaign, and the No. 5 team found positive momentum heading into the next round of the 2024 Playoffs.

Sunday’s race at Charlotte Motor Speedway had lots of road course talent in the 38-car field. Shane van Gisbergen set the tone for the weekend by winning the pole for the Bank of America Roval 400 on Saturday, something he also accomplished in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. A.J. Allmendinger, a driver known for dominating Charlotte’s road course began the race in third and had high hopes to earn his second win on the 2.28-mile circuit. Both van Gisbergen and Allmendinger led laps but did not find a way to hold off Larson and the No. 5 team.

Larson took the lead from Allmendinger on Lap 67 and led the final 42 laps with no stress. The No. 5 team entered the race +52 points on the playoff cutline and gained enough points mid-race to lock themselves into the round of 8 when stage two ended.

The first stage was won by Tyler Reddick, who had one of the most drama-filled races of the season. Everything was going well, then stage two began and chaos erupted. His points earned in stage one were thrown away as he collided with Denny Hamlin in the newly configured turn seven. Reddick had to come down pit road and repair damages which set him down to last place; he had a battle to face for the rest of the event. Coming down to the end of the event, he needed to gain positions or hope for Joey Logano’s downfall. Luckily, the No. 22 team did not hold on to the few points they had, and Reddick advanced with some late-race passes.

Even with Logano not earning enough points to advance to the next round of the playoffs, he found a way to lock himself into the next round. Alex Bowman failed post-race inspection, and with this disqualification, he was eliminated from a shot at the championship in Phoenix next month. The No. 48 car did not meet weight requirements in post-race inspection, this put a sour end to a strong day from Hendrick Motorsports, who thought they had all four cars locked in the round of 8.

Other than Bowman, Chase Briscoe, Daniel Suarez, and Austin Cindric were eliminated from a chance to become a 2024 Cup Series Champion. Entering the race, all three of these drivers appeared to be in a “must-win” scenario to advance to the next round, and none could get it done.

The first two stages of Sunday’s race were won by Reddick and Bowman, both earning crucial stage points that could have saved their playoff hopes. Reddick advanced with +4 points.

NASCAR heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway to kick off the next round of the 2024 Playoffs, eight drivers have a chance to lock themselves into a shot at the championship with a win, catch the action on Sunday at 2:30 pm.