What NASCAR Cup drivers said after first win at Talladega for Kyle Larson

Kyle Larson — first: “What a day. Just can't really say enough about it. We had so much help from our Chevy teammates throughout the whole field, all day long, and it really allowed us to just feel like I was on offense. Our No. 5 Chevrolet was really good and handled well. That last lap got crazy. Austin Hill was doing an amazing job pushing me, and he was just on me really tight in (turns) 1 and 2. I just didn't feel confident to turn my hands, and it just kind of wandered me up the track. He was able to get underneath me, and I thought it was over for me right there, but I don't know what happened. Just momentum and energy got broke up and here we came. Just wild how it ended up there. Yeah, really all day long, I had help from the Chevy cars out there. It helped because they were all fast, as well, and had good days going. That’s what it takes on speedways, I feel like, is to have some allies. So just was proud of everybody at Chevrolet for the effort that they put in. Huge thank you to my team, as well. This wouldn't be possible without them. It’s been 22 years since that terrible plane crash that took so many loved ones from Hendrick Motorsports. I really felt like they were riding with us there on that last lap to get this win. Well, I mean, as we all probably did in the field, we felt like there was an opportunity to have a good day if things went right, and man, did everything go just how I needed it to. I did not expect to have the point lead that I had when I got out of the car. I thought I'd be in the 40s, maybe 50s, which is still amazing. But a 73-point lead is incredible. Hopefully, we can go to Martinsville and have a good day and then just close it out would be amazing.”William Byron — second: “I feel like the energy got broken up off of (Turn) 2, and I was like, man, I have a shot to get clear here and see what would happen. Once I got clear kind of into turn three, I had (Cole Custer) pushing me and Cole did a great job of just kind of keeping the momentum going. They all kind of split in front of me and I thought if I could get to the top that maybe I would have a shot. Second sucks, but it’s good that Kyle (Larson) won. We worked really well together all day. If I couldn’t win, I wanted him to win. At the end there, we weren’t really connected together. I was pushing (Todd Gilliland), and it looked like it got broken up in the front and have a shot at the win. Just proud of the fight by this No. 24 Chevrolet team. Our Chevy was good today. It’s fun to come to these places and have chances to make decisions at the end. I thought I made the right one, and then out of nowhere, here came someone on the bottom and it was the No. 5, so I’m happy for those guys. It sucks to finish second, but it was a good day.”Ricky Stenhouse Jr. — third: “I did everything that I felt like I needed to do. I just never saw (Larson) coming. I was focused on (Byron), and by the time realized (Larson) was coming from five or six positions back, I just wasn’t able to get down and block him. It was an awesome day for our No. 47 Chevrolet team. They worked really hard. The strategy got us in a really good position to lead the race and control the race a lot during that final stage, so I was really happy about that. Just one wrong move there at the end, trying to block (Byron), we gave the race to (Larson).”Ross Chastain — fourth: “Not sped on that first stop. We had a massive issue with our speed prediction and I just completely forgot to go to the new lights on that first stop. We were stuck a lap down for most of the day, and I thought we were going to sweep a bucket of Busch Light camo into the trailer, but glad we made it and got our lap back. I thought we were going to get it back the old fashion and that would have been really cool. On the last lap, Brandon McReynolds (spotter) just called to push the No. 5 (Kyle Larson, race winner). I’m thankful he did it because he could see a lot better than I can, and I’m glad that a Chevrolet won.”Cole Custer — fifth: “There were some really big runs there at the end. (Kyle) Larson, I think he went back to seventh and then back to first. He just came out of nowhere on that trioval, I’m guessing with the No. 1 car (Ross Chastain) pushing him. It was a great run for our No. 41 Chevrolet team. This team has worked so hard all year long with the manufacturer swap. For them to get a top-five this year is awesome. We just executed a solid race and put ourselves in a great position at the end.”Carson Hocevar — sixth: “I only really got flats and a hole on the right-side door. Other than that, we were fine. I have to really thank the tow truck guy for getting us back to pit road quickly. We’re not allowed to throw it in reverse and drive out of the garage, they have to push me out of the garage, so we had everyone back there helping. My team put four tires on, pushed me out of the garage and I got going. I thought we had to beat the pace car to the line, but I think we could have waited another lap, so we actually beat the field and got almost a lap ahead. That just shows how fast my team works, so all the credit to them.”Todd Gilliland — seventh: “I was really, really wishing I had at least a little bit of Ford horsepower behind me there. That was a pretty lonely feeling that at this point in the Chase, those guys have shown you over and over what they’re willing to do. I knew I was in a really tough spot, and then, honestly, (Byron) was more help than I expected. Once (Larson got down there I was like, ‘Alright, maybe we just go race it out.’ And (Larson) actually got hung out. Seriously, I don’t even know where he came from. I think we all just kind of got jammed up. I kind of got onto the apron into turn three and then, I don’t know, those guys were really far out in front of me and then the guys kind of got hooked up behind me. I just didn’t do a good job of blocking it there at the end, but everyone was coming extremely fast behind me, so, I don’t know. We just didn’t feel like we had great raw speed, but, overall, we’ll take it. That was the first time I feel like I had a real opportunity at one of these things, so we’ll just keep learning. I would have loved to choose the middle or the outside lane, but we’ve seen it in years past, I think it was with (Ryan Preece) last year. If there are three, four or five of them in line, they’ll just go around you and you really have no option at that point. Once you get stuck in the middle, you’re really toast. That was at least our plan was to stick to the bottom and from there just kind of see what develops. Like I said, I knew I wasn’t in a great spot, but it was a chance nonetheless. I think if anything I’m more so thinking about what I could have done on the last lap. I think (Byron) was way off me when we were kind of getting up to speed, which doesn’t help. It’s not great for sure, but I feel like I just missed some blocks there. I think there was a lot going on and I just didn’t do the best job on the backstretch back to the start-finish line of that last lap.”Denny Hamlin — eighth: “It knocked some front toe damage in it. Obviously, the body too. It was a handful, but it was at least serviceable. It wasn’t undrivable.”Ryan Preece — 13th: “The key to racing is always being the first one, whether that be in the shop, on the track, strategy, whatever it may be you find the advantage before everybody else. I’m pumped that they did that because I’m a racer. I want people to push the crap out of things to be the first one because then we all benefit from it, so hopefully that sets the tone for the off-season and everything we’re gonna work on towards next year.” We essentially eliminated people We ruined people’s days by doing what we did. I think there were only 26 or 27 cars on the lead lap after the first stage and that will never happen again. I don’t think anyone would ever allow it to happen and, yeah, it was just really cool, but, to me, that’s not being stupid but thinking outside the box and executing a good plan. Good for them. I want that on all facets, everything. I think there’s still a lot to digest and look back on. There were times the outside, the third lane worked. There were times the first lane worked. I think a lot of it is there’s some bad habits that were created in the 2015 era of just killing momentum and ultimately I think it just ruins lanes. I don’t know, but I know that if somebody was on your door, I know my car got light a few times.”Riley Herbst — 26th: “I’m OK; it was a big one. But just thank you to 2311 Racing and Toyota for the support. It’s been an up-and-down year, to say the least. I thought we had a shot at it there at the end. We got shuffled out a little bit, but came back and ultimately just got caught up in that wreck at Talladega. My dad always said, ‘If you’re going to be dumb, you better be tough.’ So, cheers.”Austin Cindric — 27th: “It sure looked like Talladega to me. It’s kind of all we could do there is try and push our lane forward and guys racing up front for the lead pushed too hard and spun out and I hit a few of them and now I’m here. It definitely raced different than we’ve typically seen here. Maybe the eye test doesn’t say that, but it was an interesting race and obviously great to linked up with Joey there to get some stage points, but it’s just a shame we weren’t able to finish out the deal and have more control over our end result.”Erik Jones — 28th: “I saw (Joey Logano) get kind of crossed up, and not sure by who. At that point, I knew it was going to be close to me being clipped. I don’t know if he caught us or if (Carson Hocevar) caught us, but it sent us into the wall. The Camry was fast – one of the faster cars that I’ve had in a while at Talladega. It didn’t drive the best, but it had good speed. I was excited we were getting in a better position for the next couple, and I was hoping it was going to work out in the end. I knew there would be one more wreck coming, and I was far enough up to miss it, but it just didn’t work out.”Joey Logano — 34th: “It looks like I just got a little push in the wrong spot there. It was a very much a Talladega Nights moment like, ‘Oh, no. I’m upside down. This is not good moment.’ But I can’t think the safety crew enough. They did an amazing job flipping that thing over. The car did a great job. The last time I flipped it was crushed on my head. This time, I don’t think anything really caved or crushed at all. I appreciate what NASCAR has done. Thank you and the safety team for getting me out of there. There were some vicious hits in that one. I’m just happy to be alive. The radios got disconnected, and I kept trying to, I was thinking about my wife. She was probably wigging out on me, but I tried talking to whoever I could, but when I flipped everything came off out of the pockets there. It was a hell of a ride. I don’t know if I should be mad that I wrecked or happy to be alive. I think I’m more happy to be alive. Screw the rest of the stuff, but it was a wild ride there. We were in position to do something pretty good there and it’s just the end of the race scenario. You feel it coming. You know it. I seen the cars that are around me and I was like, ‘This is not how I dreamed it up,’ but it is what it is. It’s the end of the race. Carson was doing a good job pushing me in the right spots and everything, and it just seemed like a lot of action was happening in the tri-oval and just got a shove right in the wrong spot, and it shipped me. I almost had it saved, I thought, and then I went head-on into the fence and had a Ricky Bobby moment at Talladega more than I like it. It was a long time on the lid and a hell of a ride, but I’m glad I didn’t tumble. Again, the safety crew did an amazing job flipping that thing over. They were there immediately and someone was in my window the whole time. It’s a scary feeling to be honest with you because you’re upside down and you can’t get out. You’re seeing fuel and stuff leak and it’s like, ‘Man, I don’t like this.’ But it was nice to have somebody right there with me and they did a nice job flipping it over and the car did its job, too. Thank you to NASCAR and all the work they do there. That was much needed on this one, so I appreciate that. I don’t know whether to be frustrated because I wrecked or happy to be alive. I’m kind of choosing the happy to be alive at this point. That was a long time to be on the lid.” Ryan Blaney — 38th: “We were just racing hard three-wide and protecting and probably didn’t make a very good move. It hurts us a lot, so we’ll have to see what we can do next week. It wasn’t (Logano's) fault. We were both trying to protect it. Both of us didn’t time it very good and unfortunately wrecked folks. I feel like I had a hand in kind of being aggressive there, but it’s a shame guys got tore up. Just trying to protect lanes and kind of got to the top lane and got big shoves. I don’t know. Everyone just pushing hard and things kind of got squirrely.”John Hunter Nemechek — 39th: “I was riding in line, and all of a sudden everyone was turning left and I couldn’t get low enough fast enough. My right front hit someone’s splitter and broke the lower control arm, not much damage – other than breaking suspension parts. That sucks for sure. I hate it for Toyota and everyone on this 42 group. I was really hoping to have a strong run here today, and it kind of caps our season with that.”