diff --git a/pkg/controllers/disruption/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/disruption/controller.go
index 45bc78f0c0..b809ccad73 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/disruption/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/disruption/controller.go
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ package disruption
 import (
 	"bytes"
 	"context"
-	"errors"
+	stderrors "errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"strings"
 	"sync"
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/awslabs/operatorpkg/singleton"
 	"github.com/samber/lo"
-	"go.uber.org/multierr"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/util/uuid"
 	"k8s.io/utils/clock"
 	controllerruntime "sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime"
@@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ import (
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/manager"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/reconcile"
 
+	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/utils/pretty"
+
 	v1 "sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/apis/v1"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/cloudprovider"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/controllers/disruption/orchestration"
@@ -126,13 +128,16 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context) (reconcile.Result, error) {
 		return reconcile.Result{RequeueAfter: time.Second}, nil
 	}
 
-	// Karpenter taints nodes with a karpenter.sh/disruption taint as part of the disruption process
-	// while it progresses in memory. If Karpenter restarts during a disruption action, some nodes can be left tainted.
+	// Karpenter taints nodes with a karpenter.sh/disruption taint as part of the disruption process while it progresses in memory.
+	// If Karpenter restarts or fails with an error during a disruption action, some nodes can be left tainted.
 	// Idempotently remove this taint from candidates that are not in the orchestration queue before continuing.
 	if err := state.RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx, c.kubeClient, false, lo.Filter(c.cluster.Nodes(), func(s *state.StateNode, _ int) bool {
 		return !c.queue.HasAny(s.ProviderID())
 	})...); err != nil {
-		return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("removing taint from nodes, %w", err)
+		if errors.IsConflict(err) {
+			return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
+		}
+		return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("removing taint %s from nodes, %w", pretty.Taint(v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint), err)
 	}
 
 	// Attempt different disruption methods. We'll only let one method perform an action
@@ -140,6 +145,9 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context) (reconcile.Result, error) {
 		c.recordRun(fmt.Sprintf("%T", m))
 		success, err := c.disrupt(ctx, m)
 		if err != nil {
+			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
+				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
+			}
 			return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("disrupting via reason=%q, %w", strings.ToLower(string(m.Reason())), err)
 		}
 		if success {
@@ -201,7 +209,7 @@ func (c *Controller) executeCommand(ctx context.Context, m Method, cmd Command,
 	})
 	// Cordon the old nodes before we launch the replacements to prevent new pods from scheduling to the old nodes
 	if err := state.RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx, c.kubeClient, true, stateNodes...); err != nil {
-		return multierr.Append(fmt.Errorf("tainting nodes (command-id: %s), %w", commandID, err), state.RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx, c.kubeClient, false, stateNodes...))
+		return fmt.Errorf("tainting nodes with %s (command-id: %s), %w", pretty.Taint(v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint), commandID, err)
 	}
 
 	var nodeClaimNames []string
@@ -210,7 +218,7 @@ func (c *Controller) executeCommand(ctx context.Context, m Method, cmd Command,
 		if nodeClaimNames, err = c.createReplacementNodeClaims(ctx, m, cmd); err != nil {
 			// If we failed to launch the replacement, don't disrupt.  If this is some permanent failure,
 			// we don't want to disrupt workloads with no way to provision new nodes for them.
-			return multierr.Append(fmt.Errorf("launching replacement nodeclaim (command-id: %s), %w", commandID, err), state.RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx, c.kubeClient, false, stateNodes...))
+			return fmt.Errorf("launching replacement nodeclaim (command-id: %s), %w", commandID, err)
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -229,10 +237,10 @@ func (c *Controller) executeCommand(ctx context.Context, m Method, cmd Command,
 	// We have the new NodeClaims created at the API server so mark the old NodeClaims for deletion
 	c.cluster.MarkForDeletion(providerIDs...)
 
-	if err := c.queue.Add(orchestration.NewCommand(nodeClaimNames,
+	if err = c.queue.Add(orchestration.NewCommand(nodeClaimNames,
 		lo.Map(cmd.candidates, func(c *Candidate, _ int) *state.StateNode { return c.StateNode }), commandID, m.Reason(), m.ConsolidationType())); err != nil {
 		c.cluster.UnmarkForDeletion(providerIDs...)
-		return fmt.Errorf("adding command to queue (command-id: %s), %w", commandID, multierr.Append(err, state.RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx, c.kubeClient, false, stateNodes...)))
+		return fmt.Errorf("adding command to queue (command-id: %s), %w", commandID, err)
 	}
 
 	// An action is only performed and pods/nodes are only disrupted after a successful add to the queue
@@ -292,6 +300,6 @@ func (c *Controller) logInvalidBudgets(ctx context.Context) {
 		}
 	}
 	if buf.Len() > 0 {
-		log.FromContext(ctx).Error(errors.New(buf.String()), "detected disruption budget errors")
+		log.FromContext(ctx).Error(stderrors.New(buf.String()), "detected disruption budget errors")
 	}
 }
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/disruption/orchestration/queue.go b/pkg/controllers/disruption/orchestration/queue.go
index 7da499e0d8..e9a24ff4b7 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/disruption/orchestration/queue.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/disruption/orchestration/queue.go
@@ -181,7 +181,7 @@ func (q *Queue) Reconcile(ctx context.Context) (reconcile.Result, error) {
 	if err := q.waitOrTerminate(ctx, cmd); err != nil {
 		// If recoverable, re-queue and try again.
 		if !IsUnrecoverableError(err) {
-			// store the error that is causing us to fail so we can bubble it up later if this times out.
+			// store the error that is causing us to fail, so we can bubble it up later if this times out.
 			cmd.lastError = err
 			// mark this item as done processing. This is necessary so that the RLI is able to add the item back in.
 			q.RateLimitingInterface.Done(cmd)
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/node/termination/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/node/termination/controller.go
index d1df6118df..b8e49a3931 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/node/termination/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/node/termination/controller.go
@@ -39,6 +39,8 @@ import (
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/manager"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/reconcile"
 
+	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/utils/pretty"
+
 	v1 "sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/apis/v1"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/cloudprovider"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/controllers/node/termination/terminator"
@@ -91,7 +93,7 @@ func (c *Controller) finalize(ctx context.Context, node *corev1.Node) (reconcile
 		return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("listing nodeclaims, %w", err)
 	}
 
-	if err := c.deleteAllNodeClaims(ctx, nodeClaims...); err != nil {
+	if err = c.deleteAllNodeClaims(ctx, nodeClaims...); err != nil {
 		return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("deleting nodeclaims, %w", err)
 	}
 
@@ -100,10 +102,13 @@ func (c *Controller) finalize(ctx context.Context, node *corev1.Node) (reconcile
 		return reconcile.Result{}, err
 	}
 
-	if err := c.terminator.Taint(ctx, node, v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint); err != nil {
-		return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("tainting node with %s, %w", v1.DisruptedTaintKey, err)
+	if err = c.terminator.Taint(ctx, node, v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint); err != nil {
+		if errors.IsConflict(err) {
+			return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
+		}
+		return reconcile.Result{}, client.IgnoreNotFound(fmt.Errorf("tainting node with %s, %w", pretty.Taint(v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint), err))
 	}
-	if err := c.terminator.Drain(ctx, node, nodeTerminationTime); err != nil {
+	if err = c.terminator.Drain(ctx, node, nodeTerminationTime); err != nil {
 		if !terminator.IsNodeDrainError(err) {
 			return reconcile.Result{}, fmt.Errorf("draining node, %w", err)
 		}
@@ -114,7 +119,7 @@ func (c *Controller) finalize(ctx context.Context, node *corev1.Node) (reconcile
 		// if the Node Ready condition is true
 		// Similar logic to: https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/blob/3a75a8c8d9e6a1ebd98d8572132e675d4980f184/staging/src/k8s.io/cloud-provider/controllers/nodelifecycle/node_lifecycle_controller.go#L144
 		if nodeutils.GetCondition(node, corev1.NodeReady).Status != corev1.ConditionTrue {
-			if _, err := c.cloudProvider.Get(ctx, node.Spec.ProviderID); err != nil {
+			if _, err = c.cloudProvider.Get(ctx, node.Spec.ProviderID); err != nil {
 				if cloudprovider.IsNodeClaimNotFoundError(err) {
 					return reconcile.Result{}, c.removeFinalizer(ctx, node)
 				}
@@ -231,8 +236,12 @@ func (c *Controller) removeFinalizer(ctx context.Context, n *corev1.Node) error
 	stored := n.DeepCopy()
 	controllerutil.RemoveFinalizer(n, v1.TerminationFinalizer)
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, n) {
+		// We use client.StrategicMergeFrom here since the node object supports it and
+		// a strategic merge patch represents the finalizer list as a keyed "set" so removing
+		// an item from the list doesn't replace the full list
+		// https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/111643#issuecomment-2016489732
 		if err := c.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, n, client.StrategicMergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
-			return client.IgnoreNotFound(fmt.Errorf("patching node, %w", err))
+			return client.IgnoreNotFound(fmt.Errorf("removing finalizer, %w", err))
 		}
 
 		metrics.NodesTerminatedTotal.With(prometheus.Labels{
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/node/termination/terminator/terminator.go b/pkg/controllers/node/termination/terminator/terminator.go
index 8ed53ced43..3310f50542 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/node/termination/terminator/terminator.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/node/termination/terminator/terminator.go
@@ -73,7 +73,10 @@ func (t *Terminator) Taint(ctx context.Context, node *corev1.Node, taint corev1.
 		corev1.LabelNodeExcludeBalancers: "karpenter",
 	})
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(node, stored) {
-		if err := t.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.StrategicMergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+		// Here, we are updating the taint list
+		if err := t.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 		taintValues := []any{
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/consistency/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/consistency/controller.go
index d1a53dd447..832d10809d 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/consistency/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/consistency/controller.go
@@ -100,10 +100,10 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim) (re
 		return reconcile.Result{}, err
 	}
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nodeClaim) {
-		// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
 		// Here, we are updating the status condition list
-		if err = c.kubeClient.Status().Update(ctx, nodeClaim); client.IgnoreNotFound(err) != nil {
+		if err = c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); client.IgnoreNotFound(err) != nil {
 			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
 				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
 			}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/disruption/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/disruption/controller.go
index 1d0f986813..e5cef47117 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/disruption/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/disruption/controller.go
@@ -92,10 +92,10 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim) (re
 		results = append(results, res)
 	}
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nodeClaim) {
-		// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
 		// Here, we are updating the status condition list
-		if err := c.kubeClient.Status().Update(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
+		if err := c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
 				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
 			}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/controller.go
index 63d44f84ad..8a2e739b4b 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/controller.go
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ import (
 	"golang.org/x/time/rate"
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/equality"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	"k8s.io/client-go/util/workqueue"
 	"k8s.io/utils/clock"
 	controllerruntime "sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime"
@@ -85,7 +86,13 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim) (re
 	stored := nodeClaim.DeepCopy()
 	controllerutil.AddFinalizer(nodeClaim, v1.TerminationFinalizer)
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(nodeClaim, stored) {
-		if err := c.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+		// Here, we are updating the finalizer list
+		if err := c.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
+			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
+				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
+			}
 			return reconcile.Result{}, client.IgnoreNotFound(err)
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/initialization.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/initialization.go
index 0c3979be86..8fbc2b8564 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/initialization.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/initialization.go
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ func (i *Initialization) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim)
 	stored := node.DeepCopy()
 	node.Labels = lo.Assign(node.Labels, map[string]string{v1.NodeInitializedLabelKey: "true"})
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, node) {
-		if err = i.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.StrategicMergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
+		if err = i.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.MergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
 			return reconcile.Result{}, err
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/registration.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/registration.go
index 0fb7ba6b28..77e0e22160 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/registration.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/lifecycle/registration.go
@@ -102,7 +102,10 @@ func (r *Registration) syncNode(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim, no
 		v1.NodeRegisteredLabelKey: "true",
 	})
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, node) {
-		if err := r.kubeClient.Update(ctx, node); err != nil {
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+		// Here, we are updating the taint list
+		if err := r.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 			return fmt.Errorf("syncing node, %w", err)
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/podevents/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/podevents/controller.go
index 133e513bd0..8313e08c40 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/podevents/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/podevents/controller.go
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, pod *corev1.Pod) (reconcile.
 	// otherwise, set the pod event time to now
 	nc.Status.LastPodEventTime.Time = c.clock.Now()
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nc) {
-		if err := c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nc, client.MergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
+		if err = c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nc, client.MergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
 			return reconcile.Result{}, client.IgnoreNotFound(err)
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/controller.go
index 829f8e3a9e..0b032c2249 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/controller.go
@@ -79,7 +79,6 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, n *v1.NodeClaim) (reconcile.
 //nolint:gocyclo
 func (c *Controller) finalize(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim) (reconcile.Result, error) {
 	ctx = log.IntoContext(ctx, log.FromContext(ctx).WithValues("Node", klog.KRef("", nodeClaim.Status.NodeName), "provider-id", nodeClaim.Status.ProviderID))
-	stored := nodeClaim.DeepCopy()
 	if !controllerutil.ContainsFinalizer(nodeClaim, v1.TerminationFinalizer) {
 		return reconcile.Result{}, nil
 	}
@@ -125,12 +124,14 @@ func (c *Controller) finalize(ctx context.Context, nodeClaim *v1.NodeClaim) (rec
 			metrics.NodePoolLabel: nodeClaim.Labels[v1.NodePoolLabelKey],
 		}).Observe(time.Since(nodeClaim.StatusConditions().Get(v1.ConditionTypeInstanceTerminating).LastTransitionTime.Time).Seconds())
 	}
+	stored := nodeClaim.DeepCopy() // The NodeClaim may have been modified in the EnsureTerminated function
 	controllerutil.RemoveFinalizer(nodeClaim, v1.TerminationFinalizer)
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nodeClaim) {
-		// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+		// Here, we are updating the finalizer list
 		// https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/111643#issuecomment-2016489732
-		if err = c.kubeClient.Update(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
+		if err = c.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
 				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
 			}
@@ -170,7 +171,7 @@ func (c *Controller) annotateTerminationGracePeriodTerminationTime(ctx context.C
 	nodeClaim.ObjectMeta.Annotations = lo.Assign(nodeClaim.ObjectMeta.Annotations, map[string]string{v1.NodeClaimTerminationTimestampAnnotationKey: terminationTime})
 
 	if err := c.kubeClient.Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
-		return client.IgnoreNotFound(fmt.Errorf("patching nodeclaim, %w", err))
+		return client.IgnoreNotFound(err)
 	}
 	log.FromContext(ctx).WithValues(v1.NodeClaimTerminationTimestampAnnotationKey, terminationTime).Info("annotated nodeclaim")
 	c.recorder.Publish(terminatorevents.NodeClaimTerminationGracePeriodExpiring(nodeClaim, terminationTime))
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/suite_test.go b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/suite_test.go
index 07c859a46e..2e8e2bb13b 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/suite_test.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodeclaim/termination/suite_test.go
@@ -22,12 +22,15 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 	"time"
 
+	"github.com/awslabs/operatorpkg/object"
 	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo/v2"
 	. "github.com/onsi/gomega"
 	"github.com/samber/lo"
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/resource"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1/unstructured"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
 	"k8s.io/client-go/tools/record"
 	clock "k8s.io/utils/clock/testing"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/cache"
@@ -146,6 +149,31 @@ var _ = Describe("Termination", func() {
 		_, err = cloudProvider.Get(ctx, nodeClaim.Status.ProviderID)
 		Expect(cloudprovider.IsNodeClaimNotFoundError(err)).To(BeTrue())
 	})
+	It("should delete the NodeClaim when the spec resource.Quantity values will change during deserialization", func() {
+		nodeClaim.SetGroupVersionKind(object.GVK(nodeClaim)) // This is needed so that the GVK is set on the unstructured object
+		u, err := runtime.DefaultUnstructuredConverter.ToUnstructured(nodeClaim)
+		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+		// Set a value in resources that will get to converted to a value with a suffix e.g. 50k
+		Expect(unstructured.SetNestedStringMap(u, map[string]string{"memory": "50000"}, "spec", "resources", "requests")).To(Succeed())
+
+		obj := &unstructured.Unstructured{}
+		Expect(runtime.DefaultUnstructuredConverter.FromUnstructured(u, obj)).To(Succeed())
+
+		ExpectApplied(ctx, env.Client, nodePool, obj)
+		nodeClaim = ExpectExists(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaim)
+		ExpectObjectReconciled(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaimLifecycleController, nodeClaim)
+
+		// Expect the node and the nodeClaim to both be gone
+		Expect(env.Client.Delete(ctx, nodeClaim)).To(Succeed())
+		result := ExpectObjectReconciled(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaimTerminationController, nodeClaim) // triggers the nodeclaim deletion
+
+		Expect(result.RequeueAfter).To(BeEquivalentTo(5 * time.Second))
+		nodeClaim = ExpectExists(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaim)
+		Expect(nodeClaim.StatusConditions().Get(v1.ConditionTypeInstanceTerminating).IsTrue()).To(BeTrue())
+
+		ExpectObjectReconciled(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaimTerminationController, nodeClaim) // this will call cloudProvider Get to check if the instance is still around
+		ExpectNotFound(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaim)
+	})
 	It("should requeue reconciliation if cloudProvider Get returns an error other than NodeClaimNotFoundError", func() {
 		ExpectApplied(ctx, env.Client, nodePool, nodeClaim)
 		ExpectObjectReconciled(ctx, env.Client, nodeClaimLifecycleController, nodeClaim)
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodepool/readiness/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodepool/readiness/controller.go
index 985a0192df..1488599a6e 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodepool/readiness/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodepool/readiness/controller.go
@@ -71,7 +71,10 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodePool *v1.NodePool) (reco
 		c.setReadyCondition(nodePool, nodeClass)
 	}
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nodePool) {
-		if err = c.kubeClient.Status().Update(ctx, nodePool); client.IgnoreNotFound(err) != nil {
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+		// Here, we are updating the status condition list
+		if err = c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nodePool, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); client.IgnoreNotFound(err) != nil {
 			if errors.IsConflict(err) {
 				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
 			}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/nodepool/validation/controller.go b/pkg/controllers/nodepool/validation/controller.go
index 96fa53cb90..986952ca50 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/nodepool/validation/controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/nodepool/validation/controller.go
@@ -53,10 +53,10 @@ func (c *Controller) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, nodePool *v1.NodePool) (reco
 		nodePool.StatusConditions().SetTrue(v1.ConditionTypeValidationSucceeded)
 	}
 	if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, nodePool) {
-		// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
-		// https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/111643#issuecomment-2016489732
-		if e := c.kubeClient.Status().Update(ctx, nodePool); client.IgnoreNotFound(e) != nil {
+		// Here, we are updating the status condition list
+		if e := c.kubeClient.Status().Patch(ctx, nodePool, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); client.IgnoreNotFound(e) != nil {
 			if errors.IsConflict(e) {
 				return reconcile.Result{Requeue: true}, nil
 			}
diff --git a/pkg/controllers/state/statenode.go b/pkg/controllers/state/statenode.go
index b70e127b30..d241c51af9 100644
--- a/pkg/controllers/state/statenode.go
+++ b/pkg/controllers/state/statenode.go
@@ -507,7 +507,10 @@ func RequireNoScheduleTaint(ctx context.Context, kubeClient client.Client, addTa
 			node.Spec.Taints = append(node.Spec.Taints, v1.DisruptedNoScheduleTaint)
 		}
 		if !equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(stored, node) {
-			if err := kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.StrategicMergeFrom(stored)); err != nil {
+			// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+			// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
+			// Here, we are updating the taint list
+			if err := kubeClient.Patch(ctx, node, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 				multiErr = multierr.Append(multiErr, fmt.Errorf("patching node %s, %w", node.Name, err))
 			}
 		}
diff --git a/pkg/scheduling/taints.go b/pkg/scheduling/taints.go
index 102d9ce627..b6bd0d6ab9 100644
--- a/pkg/scheduling/taints.go
+++ b/pkg/scheduling/taints.go
@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ import (
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
 	cloudproviderapi "k8s.io/cloud-provider/api"
 
+	"sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/utils/pretty"
+
 	v1 "sigs.k8s.io/karpenter/pkg/apis/v1"
 )
 
@@ -49,7 +51,7 @@ func (ts Taints) Tolerates(pod *corev1.Pod) (errs error) {
 			tolerates = tolerates || t.ToleratesTaint(&taint)
 		}
 		if !tolerates {
-			errs = multierr.Append(errs, fmt.Errorf("did not tolerate %s=%s:%s", taint.Key, taint.Value, taint.Effect))
+			errs = multierr.Append(errs, fmt.Errorf("did not tolerate %s", pretty.Taint(taint)))
 		}
 	}
 	return errs
diff --git a/pkg/utils/pretty/pretty.go b/pkg/utils/pretty/pretty.go
index d419a71fe9..fbc7b3bf94 100644
--- a/pkg/utils/pretty/pretty.go
+++ b/pkg/utils/pretty/pretty.go
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ import (
 
 	"golang.org/x/exp/constraints"
 	"golang.org/x/exp/slices"
+	v1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
 )
 
 func Concise(o interface{}) string {
@@ -77,3 +78,10 @@ func Map[K constraints.Ordered, V any](values map[K]V, maxItems int) string {
 	}
 	return buf.String()
 }
+
+func Taint(t v1.Taint) string {
+	if t.Value == "" {
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%s:%s", t.Key, t.Effect)
+	}
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%s=%s:%s", t.Key, t.Value, t.Effect)
+}
diff --git a/pkg/utils/termination/termination.go b/pkg/utils/termination/termination.go
index 72de929d21..084339b47b 100644
--- a/pkg/utils/termination/termination.go
+++ b/pkg/utils/termination/termination.go
@@ -34,13 +34,14 @@ func EnsureTerminated(ctx context.Context, c client.Client, nodeClaim *v1.NodeCl
 	// Check if the status condition on nodeClaim is Terminating
 	if !nodeClaim.StatusConditions().Get(v1.ConditionTypeInstanceTerminating).IsTrue() {
 		// If not then call Delete on cloudProvider to trigger termination and always requeue reconciliation
-		if err := cloudProvider.Delete(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
+		if err = cloudProvider.Delete(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
 			if cloudprovider.IsNodeClaimNotFoundError(err) {
+				stored := nodeClaim.DeepCopy()
 				nodeClaim.StatusConditions().SetTrue(v1.ConditionTypeInstanceTerminating)
-				// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+				// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 				// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
-				// https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/111643#issuecomment-2016489732
-				if err = c.Status().Update(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
+				// Here, we are updating the status condition list
+				if err = c.Status().Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 					return false, err
 				}
 				// Instance is terminated
@@ -49,11 +50,12 @@ func EnsureTerminated(ctx context.Context, c client.Client, nodeClaim *v1.NodeCl
 			return false, fmt.Errorf("terminating cloudprovider instance, %w", err)
 		}
 
+		stored := nodeClaim.DeepCopy()
 		nodeClaim.StatusConditions().SetTrue(v1.ConditionTypeInstanceTerminating)
-		// We call Update() here rather than Patch() because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
+		// We use client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock because patching a list with a JSON merge patch
 		// can cause races due to the fact that it fully replaces the list on a change
-		// https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/111643#issuecomment-2016489732
-		if err := c.Status().Update(ctx, nodeClaim); err != nil {
+		// Here, we are updating the status condition list
+		if err = c.Status().Patch(ctx, nodeClaim, client.MergeFromWithOptions(stored, client.MergeFromWithOptimisticLock{})); err != nil {
 			return false, err
 		}
 		return false, nil