Kyle Larson Not Too Focused on NASCAR Legacy Yet

With a sweep at Las Vegas this past weekend, Kyle Larson notched up his 24th win in the NASCAR Cup Series. The Hendrick Motorsports driver, regarded universally as one of the best in the modern era, is already a Cup champion and looks set to compete for championships for the foreseeable future. While others are already talking about how Larson is shaping his legacy at this point in time, the #5 driver denied putting much thought into it himself.

When asked if he checks the all-time wins list after his victories and if that motivates him, the 2021 champion revealed to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, “I don’t want to focus too much on it yet. I still have room to win a lot more races, so hopefully I am creeping up on that list..”

Larson just wants to compete at the same level for atleast 5-6 years; for now, his goals are clear, “I am just trying to go in races and I am not really worried about the legacy part of it on my end as I am sitting over here at 31 years old, you know, in the middle of my career.”

As he continues to climb up the all-time wins list, @KyleLarsonRacin is trying to live in the moment and not look too far ahead.

️ “I’m not really worried about the legacy part of it on my end.”

More with the @LVMotorSpeedway winner for @TeamHendrick → https://t.co/MKhd9eLXG8 pic.twitter.com/4zF9PaMbnH

— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) March 7, 2024

This does not mean that he does not have a number in mind though. “I hope to someday down the road be up near the top-10,” concluded the HMS driver, who heads into Phoenix as a favorite.

Kyle Petty has the Kyle Busch yardstick to measure Kyle Larson

Winning the 2021 Cup title after one of the most dominant seasons in NASCAR history where he snatched 10 wins, Larson already has 18 wins with Hendrick Motorsports since his arrival around three seasons ago. After his Vegas victory, where he also swept both stages, NASCAR veteran Kyle Petty sang praises about the Elk Grove native, also sharing when he would consider him one of the greatest race car drivers.

“Once he (Larson) surpasses Kyle Busch then maybe I’ll give you that he is one of the greatest race car drivers on the face of the earth and he can do anything, anytime,” said Petty, who expressed that ever since he has been at HMS, he has dominated races in a way few have done.

Currently occupying the tenth spot on the all-time wins list is Kevin Harvick, who finished his career with 60 wins. At the level on which Larson has performed since his move from Chip Ganassi to Hendrick, that number does not seem too unrealistic for him.