Did Kyle Larson go below the yellow line in the win at Talladega Superspeedway?
On Sunday, the NASCAR Cup Series races at Talladega Superspeedway. Kyle Larson went on a last lap charge from outside the top-10 to grab the race win.
With that win, the NASCAR standings gap has widened. Only two races remain in the 2026 season.
On the final lap, Kyle Larson was close to crossing the double-yellow line. But, he was the race leader at the time.
Rule 8.3.2 (j): If NASCAR determines that a vehicle goes beneath the double yellow painted lines to improve its position it will be black-flagged.
NASCAR says Larson didn’t cross the double-yellow line. They added that Ross Chastain and Carson Hocevar both went below the line but they were forced there by the No. 34. Austin Hill would have been penalized but he finished as the last car on the lead lap and the penalty would have been mute.
They offered a full explaination of their Larson review…
Related: NASCAR threatened to black flag the field for going too slow at Talladega
NASCAR explains the reason Kyle Larson wasn’t penalized
“So there was a little bit of time,” said Forde. “We were reviewing it. The tire has to go fully below the yellow line.
He added, “So if there is even a half an inch that remains on that yellow line, we’re not going to call a penalty. So in our judgment, we felt that was pretty clear.”
“So that’s kind of where the conversation ends as far as NASCAR goes. It’s, do we feel there were tires below the yellow line? No. Okay. That’s it.”
“Let me give a full explanation of sort of the yellow line, even though it, in this particular case, is not needed. So think about those graphs, right?”
“Where you have a question and if it’s yes, go here. If it’s no, go here. So in this case, we’ll go for the reality. And then a hypothetical reality: were Kyle’s tires below the yellow line?”
“No. And to point to no, no penalty. If it’s yes, then you have to look at: do you improve your position? If that is also yes, then you look at whether you were forced down. And if the answer is yes, that would be a penalty.”
“If the answer is no, then no penalty. So there’s, to get a penalty, there’s almost three different things have to happen. To get a penalty, you have to be below the yellow line, you have to improve your position. And then, in our judgment, did you get shoved down there?”
Forde explained, “So none of that played a part in this conversation. So you’re saying, ‘Oh, maybe they didn’t call it because he had already passed the 34.’ “
“So that’s why they let it go. That’s not the case. ‘Maybe they let it go because we’re dying for Hendrick Motorsports to win another championship.’ That didn’t play a factor into this at all.”
“Yeah, so no, it was just simply in our judgment; [Larson’s] tire was still on the line, and we move on. Yeah. All right.”
Denny Hamlin responds
Denny Hamlin responded to the explanation, “My goodness. This is horrible officiating or horrible comms. I think it might be both.”
Mike Forde reacted to the comment above from Hamlin, “Horrible comms. The officiating crew is as good as it has ever been, and it really shouldn’t be up for debate.”
NASCAR Race Results: Talladega Superspeedway (October 25, 2026)
Talladega Superspeedway
Final Laps Video
Links
Kyle Larson | Denny Hamlin | NASCAR | Talladega Superspeedway
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