Hendrick Motorsports is arguably in the best position to take home their 13th win at Bristol Motor Speedway. Looking at the stats, Kyle Larson might just be Mr. Hendrick’s favorite to win this year’s Food City 500 but there is a slight twist to the tale. Bristol is not going to be a dirt race anymore. This means, the drivers who have not been able to tame the dirt version of “Bristol Baby” to this day, will drive to their fullest capabilities. Will Larson be able to keep up? More on that later. Let’s first take a look at the most dominant HMS speedsters at the half-mile racetrack.
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Hendrick Motorsports has 12 triumphs at Bristol Motor Speedway. The first one came way back on August 26, 1989, through the hands of Darrell Waltrip. However, the current Vice Chairman of the organization, Jeff Gordon, is the winningest driver at Bristol. His dominance at this track began in 1995 when he won for the first time here, followed by three consecutive victories in 1996, 1997, 1998, and then another in 2002.
Gordon retired in 2015 and after that, Hendrick Motorsports visited the victory lane at Bristol in 2017, thanks to Jimmie Johnson. The most recent winner at Bristol for the Chevy team is Kyle Larson, who won the final race of the round of 16, leading 175 laps and holding off Kevin Harvick over the last four laps. But that was on September 18, 2021. Since then, no HMS driver has won at Bristol.
CHECKERED FLAG: Get him that sword! ⚔️@KyleLarsonRacin wins at Bristol! pic.twitter.com/SjJX3WUg1C
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) September 19, 2021
Can Kyle Larson seal the deal this year?
Kyle Larson is 10 points behind the current points leader, Ryan Blaney, with 141 points, one win, one top 5, and one top 10 finish. He also has led 205 laps so far, with an average finish of 14.5. But that’s just his overall stats for 2024. Coming to Bristol, Yung Money has always been significantly strong since he joined Hendrick Motorsports in 2021.
In his three starts, the Elk Grove native has three top-five finishes, one of which is a win and the other, a top-3. In his time at HMS, he led 229 laps at BMS. Even when he used to be a driver for Chip Ganassi Racing before 2021, he recorded three top-10s and two top-3s in his last six starts for the team.
Needless to say, the #5 driver is strong at Bristol. But the question is, can he prove his dominance this year? Only time will tell.
