Kyle Larson was well on his way to winning Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway with eight laps to go. Before a spinning Taylor Gray raised the red flag, Larson was the day’s top driver and had a 16.6-second advantage over Sam Mayer. As a result, Larson and Austin Hill were on the front row for the two-lap dash to the finish. When the green flag blew for the final restart of the race, Larson’s hopes of winning were unfortunately dashed. Hill and Justin Allgaier stormed to the top two when Mayer struck the back of Larson’s vehicle during the restart, upsetting Larson’s Chevrolet.
Larson had to compete against Sheldon Creed and Mayer for third place as Hill and Allgaier put on an incredible display and fought for the victory. Larson finished in fourth place, guaranteeing that a weekend sweep after his triumph in Friday’s Truck Series race won’t be possible. Allgaier defeated Hill to win. “Obviously a bummer to have another Homestead race play out that way,” Larson said to CW Sports. “When my back tires are off the ground, I am unable to move. I did everything I could, even though it appears that I choked another one away. The No. 41 simply slammed the (crap) out of me after lagging back.” Mayer, Allgaier’s runner-up, had a different perspective on his interaction with Larson.
Mayer told CW Sports, “I just mistimed it, unfortunately,” in reference to the final restart. “He went pretty late in the [restart] box, just playing games, and got to his [Larson’s] bumper a bit too early. To gain the advantage at this level, you must do that. He simply waited for a very long time, and I wasn’t prepared for that.” Larson was left wondering what may have happened on a day where he led 132 laps and won Stage 2 while Allgaier celebrated winning the Xfinity Series for the second time in a row. He will compete in Sunday’s Straight Talk Wireless 400 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) in an attempt to win his first race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.
