Changes play part in thrilling All-Star Race

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) >> Side-by-side racing, a dramatic, decisive pass near the end for the win and even an old-style, on-track fight: NASCAR couldn’t be happier with what it saw at the All-Star Race.

“As an official, but also as a race fan, it was super exciting to watch,” said Scott Miller, NASCAR senior vice president for competition. “I can’t wait for 600 miles of that next week” at Charlotte Motor Speedway in NASCAR’s longest race, the Coca-Cola 600.

Kyle Larson got a thrilling push from Kevin Harvick after slipping between Kyle Busch and Joey Logano on a restart in the final stage to hold on for the win Saturday night. When it was over, Clint Bowyer rushed at Ryan Newman in his car, raining rights and lefts through the window like an outof-control windup toy.

NASCAR experimented with technical changes it expects will be part of the Gen-7 car scheduled for 2021. The first was a singlepiece carbon fiber splitter/pan it hoped would improve ride height and create more consistent performance in traffic. The cars also had a radiator duct that exited through the hood instead of the engine compartment, designed bring parity to aerodynamics and reduce temperatures in the car.

NASCAR called it a glimpse at the future. The changes, in part, led to many crowd-pleasing moments of the sort fans have clamored for the past few seasons.

The biggest one came 12 laps from the end when Larson, restarting sixth after a caution, found a gap just wide enough to get between Busch and Logano. He vaulted forward when Harvick got on his bumper until he was out front and held on from there.

Busch and Harvick came close down the stretch and were often alongside each other in Larson’s rearview during the final laps. But Larson held on for his first checkered flag in the NASCAR Cup Series since 2017.