Larson and Hamlin both made their final green flag pit stop in Sunday’s race on the same lap in the final stage, but Larson was able to get off pit road first and held the lead when a caution interrupted the cycle of stops.
Hamlin, however, grabbed it right back on the ensuing restart as Martin Truex Jr. hit Larson from behind and the remainder of the race turned into a cat and mouse chase that Larson felt he had little chance to win.
