Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson was moments away from grabbing his seventh win of the 2024 in Homestead-Miami last Sunday. A tad bit of over-aggression in the final laps cost him the victory and he had to settle for 13th place.
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Although the result was disappointing, Larson’s attitude earned him a lot of respect and praise from the NASCAR community. Let’s break down why.
He was battling defending champion Ryan Blaney for the lead with 13 laps to go. As they entered Turn 3, Austin Dillon, who was about to be lapped, went close to the wall and tried avoiding the leaders.
Larson came into the turn with his foot pressed harder on the throttle than necessary, got loose trying to get below Dillon, and spun out. This sequence generated multiple discussions among fans.
Had the move ended successfully, he would have taken the lead from Blaney. But the gamble didn’t play out well and it cost him a potential top-5 finish.
The common consensus in the aftermath was that Larson wouldn’t be the great racer that he is if he hadn’t attempted to take the lead. The driver agreed with it. He spoke to the veteran journalist Claire B Lang recently and expressed his thoughts.
He said, “I think just growing up, racing sprint cars and constantly pushing every lap, I think that’s a big asset to me. Sometimes it bites me.”
“I would say more times than not I am in contention to win because of that aggression. So, I am probably going to stay true to who I am.” Despite the validity of his words, one cannot deny that Larson is testing his luck with this approach.
Was on a beat reporter’s call with @KyleLarsonRacin today. Larson has hopes to make the final championship four via this weekend’s race @MartinsvilleSwy . His eyes got serious when he talked about choices he made at the end of the race @HomesteadMiami , but he is a man at peace… pic.twitter.com/9siyn7n6lW
— Claire B Lang (@ClaireBLang) October 29, 2024
Why Larson’s aggression could cost him a heavy price
The current playoff format rewards temporary luck more than consistency. Despite winning six races this season, Larson is yet to fix a spot in the Championship 4. Drivers with far fewer wins and top results have completed that feat ahead of him and he sits seven points below the elimination line.
The threat of him not making it to the season finale is as real as it gets. He has but one opportunity in Martinsville to close the gap and compete for the title. It is situations like these that showcase why he would be better off finishing races in the top 5 rather than going for the win aggressively and spinning himself.
His points haul would have been much larger had he displayed a bit of caution throughout the season. Fox analyst Larry McReynolds commented on this in an episode of NASCAR Daily Overtime, “What I’ve seen with Kyle Larson, honestly, yesterday [Sunday] was kind of a tale of his season. It’s like he swings for the fence every time. Sometimes he connects for a home run, sometimes he does not.”
End of the day, Larson knows the reciprocations of his actions. So does Rick Hendrick and the rest of his No. 5 crew. If this is the racing method that they decide to deploy, there is no concrete fault to be blamed on them for it. The victories are still coming and a second championship could well be on its way. The frame will now shift to the starting line in Martinsville.
