At Kansas on Sunday, Cup Series drivers were treated to a view that they have grown accustomed to over the past few years: the back of Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro. The Hendrick Motorsports driver led 221 laps to secure his third victory of the season and leapt ahead of his teammate, William Byron, in the points table to become the leader.
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Speaking to the press in the aftermath, he was asked how he has managed to remain confident in the face of the multiple disappointments that have marred him recently. He wrecked an IndyCar during practice a couple of weeks ago, he wrecked in the High Limit Racing Series on Friday, and he had to give up a Truck Series start to Byron this weekend.
Larson replied jovially, “I don’t know. Maybe I’ve hit stuff enough, I have a short memory. My memory has faded.” Psychological strength is a must-have for professional drivers at this level of racing. That includes moving on from failures quickly to focus on the next job at hand. And it doesn’t need to be said out loud that Larson is adept at this.
He continued, “I do think it’s because I race a lot, I’m guessing. I would say that that’s a big part of me being able to move on quickly from things, whether it’s a good race or a bad race or a wreck or good result, bad result, whatever.” That said, he did admit that his confidence could get hurt if the mistakes became too frequent.
Larson will head to Indianapolis as NASCAR’s best ambassador
Next weekend, Larson will race in the All-Star race at North Wilkesboro. Once those festivities are over, he will be all set to undertake the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day. He attempted this feat last year and failed due to bad weather and luck. This time around, hopes are that he finishes up high in both events.
For the NASCAR Cup Series points leader to race in the Indianapolis 500 is a mammoth event. He said about this, “I just think it’s really cool. I think it’s good for our team. I think it’s good for our sport. I think it’s good for racing that the Cup Series points leader is competing in the Indy 500 for the second year in a row.”
In balance to whatever effort NASCAR is making, Larson is doing equally enough, in his capacity, to promote the sport on the global stage. This can only be underscored by a victory in the Indy 500. At this point, who can rule him out?
