Kyle Larson reflects on overcoming mistakes to win Southern 500 at Darlington
For the first time ever, Kyle Larson is a winner in the Southern 500 and at Darlington after a great opening-round performance. Securing his spot in the NASCAR Round of 12, Larson was lights out when leaders like Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick made critical mistakes.
Once he got to the lead, he wasn’t going to give it up. Tyler Reddick was fast all night, but there was no way he would be able to pass Larson with the dirty air he had to drive through. This was a long race of attrition and the No. 5 Chevy stayed together, surprisingly, to the end.
After the race, Kyle Larson reflected on the mistakes that he made and how he overcame them to take the checkered flag under the lights at Darlington.
Yeah, finally [had a good race] from start to finish,” Larson said on the frontstretch. “Eighteenth to third in the first stage, I didn’t think that was possible. Our race car was really good when the sun was out. Just had to work on it.
“I messed up once and it got hung in neutral, and I slid and hit the wall, and I think bent the toe link a little bit, so it was kind of a struggle from there. Definitely had to fight it more than I was earlier, but we kept our heads in the game. That was really important. This race is all about keeping your head in it.”
A big night for Kyle Larson in his bid for a second Cup Series title.
Kyle Larson gets headstart on the Round of 12
While it would be great to pick up more playoff points and build momentum into the Round of 12, Kyle Larson has options now. He can try and make a point, go out and win at Kansas where he was robbed of a win by Denny Hamlin earlier this season. Or, he can focus on Texas, Talladega, and the Charlotte Roval.
Since it is still so early, Larson will likely need to focus on having two more strong finishes, try to grab a stage win or two in the next couple of weeks and get ready for the next round. Texas is a race that is almost as tricky as Darlington. Playoff favorites have lost their points cushions and their title hopes because of the rough track in the Lone Star State.
If Kyle Larson is coming on strong at this point in the season, the other drivers might need to just hang it up. Larson started P18 after a bad qualifying session. He didn’t like his car to start the weekend. However, his team gave him something that could be worked on and they definitely went to work. 500 miles gives you lots of time to tinker and adjust.
So, with his big Southern 500 win, Kyle Larson adds a major to his Cup Series record. He is also going to head into the Round of 12 with a clear path to the Championship 4 ahead of him.