“It’s Legal!” Dale Earnhardt Jr. Defends Kyle Larson Amidst Controversy Over Talladega Triumph

Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson’s Talladega win was controversial, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. got his back.

“It’s Legal!” Dale Earnhardt Jr. Defends Kyle Larson Amidst Controversy Over Talladega Triumph

Dale Earnhardt Jr. defends Kyle Larson (Via imago and @DaleJr/X)

Hendrick Motorsports’ defending champion Kyle Larson produced an impressive last lap run, with the help of his Chevy teammates, to win the YellaWood 500 after getting dropped to P11 with just two turns left in the race. The win didn’t come without controversy, but the majority of the community including Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. got his back.

The No:5 Chevy dropping down to P11 from the lead and soon getting back up top raised a lot of eyebrows prompting a NASCAR investigation. They checked if the Chevy trio of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Cole Custer, and William Byron manipulated the race in favour of the champion. The SMT data as per reports suggest the overtakes were fair and legal.

Then there was the controversy over the veteran supposedly crossing the double yellow line on his way to victory. The fans can’t be blamed for thinking the Chevy driver crossed the line, as he was on driving on the edge of the inside lane in the last run. As per reports NASCAR believes the veteran didn’t have any tire below the line, though some images circling online points to a breach.

Actually, sorry they’re saying it could just be one tire below the line and would violate the rule. But Larson still didn’t have ANY tire below the line at any time, in NASCAR’s view.

Jeff Gluck reported via X.

JR Motorsports co-owner Dale Eranhardt Jr. responded to the controversy via his official X page. He didn’t infraction in Kyle Larson’s charge to the wub and highlighted how the No:5 already passed the rival in the moment that shows the supposed breach happened, avoiding any unfair advancing conversation. He also branded the yellow line infarction penalty given to Regan Smith and Justin Haley as unfair.

This looks fine to me, unlike the Syracuse 2pt conversion this weekend. The photo used here, Larson has already achieved the pass anyways. And for the record, Haley was penalized unfairly. So was Regan Smith.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrote on X.
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Kyle Larson shares his championship hopes with just two races left in the season

On his post-race media session, the Hendrick Motorsports two times Cup championship winning driver Larson talked about his improved chances of retaining the title. He asserted that it’s still not a guarantee as an early race wreck at Martinsville can ruin everything for him.

Kyle Larson
Kyle Larson (Via imago)

Yeah, I don’t know. There’s still two races. It’s so easy to look at it and be like, ‘Oh, the 5’s got it.’ We could go to Martinsville, there’s a stack-up in Turn 3 on the first lap. I could cave in the radiator and be done.

Kyle Larson said.

Later in the same conversation asserted that the 2026 chase so far has showed that one win can change whole championship dynamic. He is keeping himself and crew grounded, as the focus is on extending the lead at Martinsville.

All you guys in (the media center) are like, ‘this person is out, this person has it locked up.’ They win or something happens, boom, the picture completely changes. I’m not getting ahead of myself at all. I’m not going to let you guys get me ahead of myself either.

Kyle Larson added.

The comments from the star driver are on point and his mindset right now is exactly what is expected from the championship leader on the cusp of winning. It would be interesting to see how everything is going to playout for the star driver in the coming two important weeks.

Also Read: “So Much Drag!” Denny Hamlin Slams Next-Gen Cars After Kyle Larson’s Talladega Triumph