“It really didn’t seem that much different”: 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kyle Larson says he’s ‘ready’ to drive Next Gen cars in the 2022 season

Kyle Larson, who won the NASCAR Cup Series Championship in 2021, says he’s ready to tackle the challenge of NextGen cars in 2022. 

Larson took part in a two-day testing event at the Phoenix Raceway earlier this week. It’s the same place where he achieved his life-long dream of winning the Cup Series Championship, just under three months ago.

Larson qualified on the pole for the Championship race in Arizona and put in a fine performance to win this 10th race of the season. He became the first driver since Jimmie Johnson in 2007 to win ten races in a Championship-winning campaign.

The 2022 season is going to be different for a lot of reasons. For starters, drivers will have to get used to the Next Gen cars that are being introduced this year.

In spite of these changes, Larson feels that he’ll have no trouble in the 2022 season. After taking part in the tests in Phoenix, the California native admitted that the cars don’t feel very different.

“As far as me driving the car, I was surprised it didn’t seem that much different here than the previous car,” said Larson. “The steering was maybe a little bit quicker. Just the little things all seemed to happened a little quicker. The moments when you got loose. Stuff like that.”

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Kyle Larson shares his thoughts on where he can improve

Larson went on to say that the only bit of difference he felt was in regard to the steering of the car. He also highlighted that his team needs to work on improving the brake pedals. He said that he wasn’t feeling comfortable with how the pedal ‘kept travelling further’ with time.

“It felt fairly normal. Which I was happy about. My balance didn’t seem to change as much. I didn’t seem to get as tight in the centre (of the corner), which is good,” he continued.

“We need to work on our brakes. The brake pedal continued to travel further and further as the runs went on. That wasn’t a comforting feeling but we’re going to try some stuff tomorrow to make it better.”

The testing session in Phoenix was the last before the NASCAR curtain-raiser in Los Angeles next month. Larson insisted that despite the widespread changes, he feels ‘race ready’.

“I’m ready to race it,” the Hendrick Motorsports driver said. “Just like any race car, you’re going to learn stuff throughout the year and tweak things. Whether it be comfort things or making your brake package better. Yeah, I think we’re ready to race.”

“I’m ready to get going. I think all of us are ready to get going. I’m excited to get to L.A. ( the Busch Light Clash). It should be a fun event,” the 29-year old added.

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