Kyle Larson gets brutally honest about superspeedway frustration

Kyle Larson hasn’t been shy when it comes to speaking on his troubles on superspeedways throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career. 

The narrative has taken on a life of its own, and it’s exasperated at the beginning of each season, as all eyes turn to the Daytona 500. Whether it’s The Great American Race, it’s summer counterpart, a trip to Talladega Superspeedway or the newly reconfigured Atlanta Motor Speedway, Larson seems to find himself in trouble time after time.

During an appearance on Corey LaJoie’s Stacking Pennies podcast, the Hendrick Motorsports star spoke on his struggles at drafting-style tracks, highlighting his hope for improvement, even after a podium finish this past weekend in Georgia. 

“It’s difficult. You feel like you start to figure it out and then it changes,” Larson said, speaking candidly. “Like the [Daytona] 500, although we haven’t had good finishes, I’m confident when we go to a superspeedway. We’re up towards the mix of it typically, but Daytona I was just mad afterwards, because every move I made, which wasn’t many moves, was the wrong one.

“I was getting gridlocked back there. Just riding around, riding the middle like, ‘Okay, when am I going to wreck?’ Then you see guys like William [Byron], who’s right next to me, miss the wreck by this much every time. It’s like, why can’t I line myself up in the right lane ever? But there’s more that goes into it than luck, for sure. 

“It’s easy to say that speedway racing comes down to luck, but it’s the same guys that are winning all the time. Penske guys, they’re always up front. William’s always up front. Your [Corey LaJoie] always up front. Ricky’s [Stenhouse Jr.] always up front. You guys have an idea of how to do it, and I don’t know — I just haven’t quite figured it out. But Atlanta is so different. I just enjoy that one.”

At least Larson recognizes there’s room for improvement when it comes to superspeedway racing moving forward in his career. If he’s able to elevate his game and ascend to the level of some of the top drafting-style track drivers in the sport, there won’t be anything he can’t do in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Regardless, Kyle Larson has had immense success in his career, and that’s with not being much of a factor at superspeedways. It remains to be seen if he’s able to turn it around, but we wouldn’t bet against one of the best drivers in the world figuring it out.