Kyle Larson shocked his fellow competitors when he recited the origin of the engine in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for the championship race.
Under NASCAR’s sealed engine rule, teams must run a used engine in the season finale. Typically, not one to pore over setup details, Larson nevertheless was well aware of the source of his power plant.
“I think mine came out of Chase (Elliott’s) Martinsville car last week,” Larson said during a press conference featuring all four Championship 4 drivers on Saturday afternoon. “So, yeah, (crew chief) Cliff (Daniels) and everybody had a long night Sunday night getting it out and getting it ready.”
Pole winner Denny Hamlin was astounded.
“I can’t believe he knows,” Hamlin said.
“I wouldn’t normally know,” replied Larson, “but Cliff called me Sunday night.”
Neither Hamlin nor Briscoe knew the respective sources of their engines, but Briscoe brought down the house with his final response.
“I know Denny and I do not have our last week’s engines,” Briscoe quipped.
Good thing. Both engines failed at Martinsville.
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