Larson Wins at Texas When Zilisch's Tire Gives Out With 64 Laps to Go
Saturday, May 2, 2026
Kyle Larson won the Andy’s Frozen Custard 340 after Connor Zilisch led 48 laps, won Stage 2, and cut a right front tire on lap 136, and after Corey Day — the Talladega winner one week earlier — crashed out on the opening lap.
The Short Version
Larson wins from the third starting spot, leading 93 laps and holding off Justin Allgaier by 0.293 seconds. Zilisch won Stage 2 and led the most laps of any non-winner, then lost a right front tire with 64 laps to go. Allgaier wins Stage 1 — his fourth straight Texas Stage 1 win, sixth in the last seven Texas races. Brent Crews finishes fourth and wins the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus.
What Happened
The race started with a caution before anyone settled in. On the opening lap, Allgaier led to green from the inside while Taylor Gray and Carson Kvapil made contact in turn two — Sawalich spun in the chain reaction, Burton got collected, and Day crashed separately exiting turn two. The reigning Talladega winner was done on lap one. It was the fourth consecutive O’Reilly race to produce a caution in the first two laps.
Allgaier went to the front and stayed there through Stage 1. He won it at lap 45 — the fourth straight Texas NOS race he’s won Stage 1, the sixth time in his last seven Texas starts. The stat is too consistent to be noise. He knows this track, and this track rewards what he does in the opening stage.
Stage 2 belonged to Zilisch. He led 48 laps across the race — second only to Larson — won Stage 2 at lap 90 for his 13th stage win of 2026 and his first on a 1.5-mile track. A right front tire penalty on lap 136 while running 16th ended the trajectory. He dropped a lap and finished 21st.
The right front tire pattern — flagged at Bristol, Kansas, and Talladega — is now a Texas entry too. Whatever is generating this has not been fixed.
Larson cycled to the lead after the tire cycle cleared and built enough margin to control the final stage. Allgaier ran him down in the closing laps but couldn’t close the gap to nothing. 0.293 seconds at the flag.
Crews finished fourth and collected the Dash 4 Cash bonus. He was second at Talladega last weekend. The name from the Kansas notebook keeps appearing in the results.
The Defining Moment
Zilisch’s right front on lap 136. He was running 16th — not in a winning position at that moment, but on a track where the final pit cycle reshuffles everything, being on the lead lap with 64 to go is enough. The tire ended that possibility. He finishes a lap down in 21st. The same tire failure, on the same corner, in the fourth race it’s now cost him position. That’s the story inside the story.
The One That Got Away
Connor Zilisch. Led 48 laps. Won Stage 2. Had the pace to matter in the final stage. Got collected by the right front pattern that has followed this season everywhere the series has been. The lap down he takes today isn’t a performance verdict — it’s the fourth entry in a log that should concern the No. 1 team.
Numbers That Matter
- Winner: Kyle Larson — No. 88 · Chevrolet
- Margin of Victory: 0.293 seconds
- Cautions: 7 for 36 laps
- Lead Changes: 13 among 6 leaders
- Stage 1: Justin Allgaier | Stage 2: Connor Zilisch
- Laps Led: Larson — 93 | Allgaier — 55 | Zilisch — 48 | Crews — 2 | others — 2
- Fastest Lap: Justin Allgaier — 180.451 mph (Lap 14)
- Dash 4 Cash: Brent Crews ($100,000)
Take
Allgaier wins Stage 1 at Texas for the fourth straight time and finishes second. The consistency of that Stage 1 pattern at a single track is one of the quieter stories in the series this season. He knows how to set up a Texas race in the first 45 laps — what he hasn’t figured out is how to still have the car at lap 200.
Zilisch’s right front tire issue is a season-long concern that is no longer deniable as a one-off. Bristol. Kansas. Talladega. Now Texas. Four races. Same tire. Same corner. At some point the team has to explain what’s causing it, because the lap downs and lost positions are compounding.
Larson wins at the track type where his Cup car will race tomorrow. Whether that means anything for Sunday is a different question — the Cup field is not the Xfinity field. But the lap times tell you the equipment is right at Texas.
Notes
- Corey Day crashed on the opening lap — one week after winning at Talladega. Superspeedway winner, lap-one casualty at the first intermediate.
- This is the fourth straight O’Reilly race to produce a caution in the first two laps. Worth watching as a series pattern.
- Allgaier: Stage 1 win (4th straight Texas), finished 2nd. The Texas setup is clearly in the notebook.
- Zilisch’s Stage 2 win was his 13th stage win of 2026 and first on a 1.5-mile. The pace is there. The tire is the problem.
- Crews now has back-to-back strong finishes — 2nd at Talladega, 4th + Dash 4 Cash at Texas. The Kansas entry keeps paying dividends.