NASCAR reached a new milestone on Sunday night at Kansas Speedway, with Kyle Larson edging out Chris Buescher by just 0.001 seconds in overtime – the closest finish in the sport’s history.

The previous record was set back in 2003 when Ricky Craven beat Kurt Busch by 0.002 seconds at Darlington. That record stood for over 20 years until Larson and Buescher traded the lead multiple times on the final lap, crossing the line literally side-by-side.

“I didn’t know if we won or not,” said an elated Larson after the race. “It was just an incredible, incredible finish there.”

Buescher appeared to have victory in his sights, leading as the cars came off the final turn. But Larson timed his run to perfection, pulling ahead by mere inches to take the checkers in a true photo finish that NASCAR’s timing and scoring system initially struggled to call.

The race featured an abundance of close-quarters action from start to finish. There were 10 official lead changes at the start/finish line in Stage 1 alone, with the field going five-wide at times. Stage 2 winner Buescher had to overcome a penalty for too many crew over the wall during a pit stop that sent him to the rear of the field.

The race also provided some hope for Ford teams, who are still seeking their first win of 2024. Buescher led laps and won that Stage 2, while Noah Gragson had a strong top-10 run in 9th place, his third straight top-10 and fifth of the season so far.

As usual, Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing led the way, combining for 6 of the top 7 finishing positions as they continued their season-long dominance. Denny Hamlin won Stage 1, extending his streak of consecutive races with a lap led to 16.

But on this night, all eyes were on the breathtaking finale between Larson and Buescher that will go down as one of the most dramatic moments in NASCAR history. Their margin of 0.001 seconds beat the previous record closest finish by 0.001 seconds in an ending that simply couldn’t have been any tighter.