Bowman zips past Larson after late flat, wins at Pocono

LONG POND, Pa. — Alex Bowman helplessly watched teammate Kyle Larson zip past him in the waning laps at Pocono and apologized to his crew over the radio for blowing the lead.

Larson’s blown tire cost him so much more. Larson’s left front tire went down when his Chevrolet ran over debris less than a mile from the finish — and a fourth straight win in sight — that stunningly slammed NASCAR’s hottest driver into the wall.

Ah, so a flat tire is how you beat Kyle Larson.

Bowman had a second chance in a flash and this time would not waste the lead. This is how the last two months have rolled for Hendrick Motorsports — when one driver falters, another one finds a way to victory lane.

Bowman made it six straight wins for Hendrick, and the shredded tire denied Larson’s bid for a fourth straight Cup victory Saturday at Pocono Raceway. Bowman was in stunned disbelief as he crossed the line for for his third win of the season.

“This is the strangest win I’ve ever been a part of,” Bowman said.

Larson laughed at his misfortune. He won three straight Cup races and was in prime position for another at Pocono when he passed Bowman with three laps left in the race. Larson was maybe a mile away from becoming the first driver since former Hendrick champion Jimmie Johnson in 2007 to win four consecutive Cup races. Instead, the tire went down on the last corner of the last lap and knocked Larson out of contention.

Bowman went from toughluck loser to unlikely-winner on the 2 1/2-mile tri-oval track.

Larson said he might have run over debris to cause the tire issue. Bowman was in the right spot to take advantage — from apology to victory — and won for the third time in his last 10 races. He won at Dover and Richmond.

“We got pretty lucky there with Kyle’s misfortune,” Bowman said.

Bowman recently signed a two-year contract extension at Hendrick and wasted little time rewarding their faith in him.

For team owner Rick Hendrick, the wins keep coming.

Bowman started the win streak in May at Dover and Chase Elliott followed the next week at Texas. Larson then ripped off three straight points victories at Charlotte, Sonoma and last week at Nashville — and squeezed in the $1 million AllStar race for four wins, total — all while Hendrick Motorsports became the winningest organization in NASCAR history. All eyes were on Larson as he tried to match Johnson for the longest winning streak this century.

Larson faded to ninth. “Disbelief, still,” Larson said. “Hate that we didn’t get another win. It would have been cool to win five in a row. I felt something in the middle of the tunnel. I wasn’t sure what it was yet. It finally kind of shredded halfway through that little short shoot there.”

Hendrick has nine wins overall this season and tied its team record for consecutive wins set in 2007.

Bowman won the first of two Cup races this weekend at Pocono.

He just didn’t really get to enjoy the spoils of victory like a burnout in his No. 48 Chevy.

“I typically drink all the beers,” he said. “Can’t do that because I have to race the car tomorrow.”