Kyle Larson dominated his rivals at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night, taking a phenomenal victory at the Bass Pro Shops Night Race just as NASCAR prepared to eliminate four playoff stars.
Larson had started on the front row after qualifying behind Hendrick Motorsports team-mate Alex Bowman on Friday but ensured he was the leading man come the checkered flag having been at the front of the order for an astonishing 462 laps out of 500.
Another of Larson's Hendrick Motorsports team-mates, Chase Elliot, came home in second, but was 7.088 seconds behind, emphasizing the #5 driver's dominance.
The top five was rounded out by Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin, and Christopher Bell, with the latter two stars ensuring they advanced to the playoffs round of 12 set to get underway in Kansas City next weekend.
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the likes of Harrison Burton, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr, and Ty Gibbs, who have now all been eliminated.
Gibbs in particular will be disappointed to have been cut given that he started the night above the drop line, but his 15th place finish combined with Hamlin's P4 sealed his fate.
Official NASCAR Bristol results
1. Kyle Larson, #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
2. Chase Elliott, #9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
3. Bubba Wallace, #23 23XI Racing Toyota
4. Denny Hamlin, #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
5. Christopher Bell, #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
6. Ryan Blaney, #12 Team Penske Ford
7. Ryan Preece, #41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
8. Chase Briscoe, #14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
9. Alex Bowman, #48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
10. Ross Chastain, #1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
11. Michael McDowell, #34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
12. Noah Gragson, #10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
13. Austin Cindric, #2 Team Penske Ford
14. Chris Buescher, #17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
15. Ty Gibbs, #54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
16. Zane Smith, #71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
17. William Byron, #24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
18. Carson Hocevar, #77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
19. Daniel Hemric, #31 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
20. Tyler Reddick, #45 23XI Racing Toyota
21. Austin Dillon, #3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
22. Justin Haley, #51 Rick Ware Racing Ford
23. AJ Allmendinger, #16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
24. Martin Truex Jr., #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
25. Kyle Busch, #8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
26. Brad Keselowski, #6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
27. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., #47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
28. Joey Logano, #22 Team Penske Ford
29. Josh Berry, #4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
30. Erik Jones, #43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
31. Daniel Suarez, #99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
32. Todd Gilliland, #38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
33. John Hunter Nemechek, #42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
34. Josh Bilicki, #66 Power Source Ford
35. Harrison Burton, #21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
36. Corey Lajoie, #7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
37. Kaz Grala, #15 Rick Ware Racing Ford