NASCAR says no race manipulation from Larson teammates at Talladega

Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

NASCAR says no race manipulation from Chevrolet teammates of Kyle Larson on final lap at Talladega

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Oct 26, 2026 12:18 PM ET

Unsurprisingly, Chevrolet instructed its NASCAR Cup Series teams and drivers to help fellow bowtie brigade member Kyle Larson during Sunday's YellaWood 500 at Talladega. Teams and manufacturers instructing each other to work with a driver in title contention is nothing new.

Larson won Sunday's race, staging an incredible last-lap comeback and beating his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, to the line by just 0.041 seconds with the help of a push from Ross Chastain.

Larson's opportunity to win the race came after the front of the pack lost energy and broke up. It appeared to be Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s race to lose until Larson scooted by.

NASCAR has strict rules against race manipulation, which was at the forefront of the 2024 fall race at Martinsville after it was revealed that both Toyota and Chevrolet drivers manipulated the race in an effort to get Byron and Christopher Bell into the Championship 4.

KYLE LARSON WINS AT TALLADEGA IN THRILLING FASHION!! https://t.co/bvhb3p5y3p
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 25, 2026

Some fans who had seen the report of Chevrolet instructing their drivers to work with Larson pre-race were skeptical of the race's finish because of the fact that the other five drivers that finished inside the top-six were Chevy teammate of Larson, including Stenhouse and Byron, who Larson had to pass on the last lap to win the race.

But NASCAR reviewed SMT data post-race and found that Byron, Stenhouse and Cole Custer, who himself was punished for race manipulation in 2022 at the Charlotte Roval while driving for Stewart-Haas Racing, did not lift on the final lap and therefore did not manipulate the race in an effort to help Larson.

Two things from NASCAR: 1. They looked at the SMT data and Stenhouse, Byron and Custer were all wide open from Turn 3 to the end of the race (none of them lifted to let Larson win, in other words) 2. They say Larson's left-side tires were on the yellow line but never below the yellow line. So they reviewed that and say it's legal.
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) October 25, 2026

Larson's victory puts him 73 points up on second-place Denny Hamlin with two races to go in the season, and a lead of 76 points or more after the Nov. 1 race at Martinsville would see Larson clinch the championship ahead of the Nov. 8 race at Homestead.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

More must-reads: