Andrew Ravens Tue, October 27, 2026 at 2:11 PM UTC · 3 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kyle Larson 's win at Talladega Superspeedway drew questions about NASCAR's double-yellow line rule . NASCAR ruled he never went below the line, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. says that call was right.
Larson took the white flag in the lead, fell to 11th and then charged back to win in overtime. Ross Chastain pushed him up the inside on the final lap. He beat teammate William Byron by 0.041 seconds, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished third. It was Larson's first Cup win at a superspeedway.
Photos from the final lap showed Larson's left-side tires on the double-yellow line. NASCAR explained its review to The Athletic 's Jeff Gluck, who shared it on X.
"They say Larson's left-side tires were on the yellow line but never below the yellow line. So they reviewed that and say it's legal," Gluck wrote.
NASCAR then changed its explanation twice, On3 reported. Officials first told Gluck that both tires had to be fully below the line for a penalty.
They later corrected that. "Actually sorry they're saying it could just be one tire below the line and would violate the rule," Gluck wrote. "But Larson still didn't have ANY tire below the line at any time, in NASCAR's view."
NASCAR also checked whether any Chevrolet drivers let Larson by. Gluck reported that officials reviewed SMT data for Stenhouse, Byron and Cole Custer.
"They looked at the SMT data, and Stenhouse, Byron and Custer were all wide open from Turn 3 to the end of the race (none of them lifted to let Larson win, in other words)," Gluck wrote.
Earnhardt weighed in on X after photos of Larson on the line spread online.
"This looks fine to me. The photo used here, Larson has already achieved the pass anyways. And for the record, Haley was penalized unfairly. So was Regan Smith," Earnhardt wrote.
Justin Haley and Regan Smith both lost apparent wins on yellow-line calls. Smith's came at Talladega in 2008, when NASCAR gave the Cup win to Tony Stewart.
Under the rule, a driver who goes below the line and improves his position can be penalized, even if the pass is not finished below it. NASCAR's Mike Forde explained that standard after Bubba Wallace's penalty at Atlanta in July.
Larson admitted his win made little sense after the race. With two races left, he leads Denny Hamlin by 73 points in the Chase.
The Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway next, with the motorsports season down to its final two races.
Source: Sports
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