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Kyle Larson Interview

Kyle Larson Interview

SPEED with Harvick and Buxton Apr 06, 2026 27 min
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About this episode

Kyle Larson talks Daytona 500 vibes, loving the tunnel entrance and the unique “biggest race first” pressure—especially with the high chance of not finishing. He compares NASCAR’s Daytona week to the Indy 500’s slower ramp and explains how experience helps him focus and manage expectations. Larson weighs the new NASCAR championship format, saying it rewards consistency and reduces knockout-style chaos. Off-track, he shares his sprint car schedule changes for family time, his limited-but-involved series ownership, and how dirt racing sharpens his Cup instincts. He also debates international respect for NASCAR, ranks top sprint car drivers, and discusses how SVG’s road-racing talent is pushing the garage to improve.

Topics: daytona 500 atmosphere larson’s mindset and expectation management nascars new championship format and consistency daytona vs indy 500 race-week dynamics sprint car schedule and family tradeoffs series ownership perspective dirt racing cross-training for cup international respect for nascar best driver debates (larson vs verstappen) svg impact on the garage
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For me personally, there was never anything better than the first race of the season at Daytona.
Who's better?
How awesome.
Oh, Max Verstappen.
I'm a really bad coach.
I think I'm really bad at it.
Americans don't get the respect that they deserve from Europeans.
In any form, I feel like, of sport.
I think us coming in is really push the sport to the next level, which is what it needed.
Hello, folks. It is another episode of Speed with Harvick and Buxton.
Let's talk some racing, Will.
Let's talk some racing with the man who needs a little introduction.
God, Larson, how are you?
I'm good. How are you guys?
Pretty good.
So far, so good.
Pretty good.
What's it like coming back as a champ?
But for me personally, there was never anything better than the first race of the season at Daytona.
Is it still the same for you?
Yeah, I don't know.
I think you're talking like post-championship?
Well, just in general, driving into this track.
Okay, yeah.
I love pulling in the tunnel for the first time and seeing all the thousands of campers
and seeing all the different campsites and the campsites that are always here in the same spots
and bars and people huddled up around them and stuff.
So that's really cool.
And then today, tomorrow, more campers rolling in.
They're all flooding in.
So yeah, the atmosphere for the 500 is unlike any other NASCAR race of the year.
What's it like having to build up in the off season to come into the first race of your main season
being the biggest race of the year?
But a race where there's such a high percentage chance you don't even finish.
Yeah, yeah.
I know it's odd for sure.
I mean, it's odd that our biggest race is the first race,
but I also think it's fun and unique that we kick off our season with a huge event.
And then we still get to end our season with a big event.
This year, a home set to crown a champion.
But then yeah, I mean, as you mentioned, the 500, there's a lot of circumstance that can go into it
that can take you out or luckily get you through to have a good finish or a win.
But the older I've gotten, the more I accept that.
And I think like I have more fun with the race now because it's not like, well, whatever, you know,
I hate this race.
So no, I look forward to it.
I think we've gotten better at this style of race.
And I actually legitimately feel like I could potentially win finally some day on a Super Super 8.
I'd like to hear that.
You've been to the Indy 500.
You've been to the Daytona 500.
What are the different dynamics of each series biggest race, you know, compared to each other?
Yeah, well, they're different.
So it's like, I don't think it's fair to like try to compare them.
And I don't want like people to hear me describe the two of them and think that I'm making one out to be better than the other
because I truly feel like they're both equally amazing.
I will say like the Indy 500, I just feel like, you know, they do like the drivers meeting on the front stretch
and there's fans and they give each driver a ring that has, you know, their average qualifying speed and stuff.
So like there's a little bit of gifts and things that I think make the 500 special.
But then you also get like similar pageantry and prestige at this race too.
I mean, doing the media day, I feel like the media day is a little bit like more fancy almost here.
Similar, but like a little bit more fancy here.
And then Daytona is just a shorter week now.
Like it's not two weeks like it used to be.
So it's not that you're rushed through it, it's just the Indy 500 is like a slow, like a really slow ramp up to the race,
which makes the race feel really big.
We're here, it's like, boom, we're straight and qualifying, duels, and then boom, the race.
So it's like a quick build up.
So they're both unique and both both fun to have been able to be a part of.
How much does age and experience allow you to kind of temper expectation,
but kind of almost relax yourself into it so you don't put too much pressure on yourself?
Yeah, I mean, I don't think I've ever put too much pressure on myself,
but I think I'm more like focused on the race now.
I think with the first year, especially in first couple of years,
like it's a bit overwhelming to see this many fans here, like, you know,
and doing you do the catwalk and all that, like it's craziness and pit road and all that,
where it was a little bit more distracting back then,
where now it's like you can just kind of keep your blinders on and stay more focused.
And when you get in the car, you're kind of ready to switch on and go.
So yeah, I think that comes with probably the age and experience.
And I guess with that age and experience, you know, a change in the championship format,
you know, for this year, having it be more about the season as a whole and that consistency,
how much does that you think play to your strengths?
Well, I think it plays to motor sports strengths very well.
I think for me, I'm not the most consistent, but I feel like I can be more consistent.
I think the other format, you know, you take more risks with it.
So I think you might have a little bit less risk, which will help the consistency
and maybe even win more races, hopefully too.
But I think the big teams that consistently around up front, it's going to help them
a little bit more where you can't get taken out from circumstances easily
as you could with the previous playoff format.
So I mean, I still think though, your contenders in the previous format
are going to be the same contenders now.
It's just going to be fun to kind of battle it out throughout 10 races,
rather than, you know, many, many rounds.
When you go into a new season, obviously you analyze everything that you did the last year.
You're not doing the Indy 500 this year.
What is your, what is your Sprint car midget schedule look like?
Xfinity, did you kind of, have you reanalyzed that?
Do you have places that you want to go?
How do you decide how many races you want to run in a year?
Yeah, I'm going to run a little bit less.
It's like 25 Sprint car races this year, which I mean, I say a little bit less.
That's still a lot for probably some, some racers.
For a guy that has a full-time job.
Yeah. And I think last year I probably did low 30.
So it's not like I'm cutting back a lot, but I just, for me, like I'm at the point, my kids,
I'm missing a lot of the stuff that my kids are doing.
Right.
So I want to like be able to go to their races more at Millbridge.
Like a lot of the high-limit stuff is on Wednesdays and I don't get to watch Owen
and it's in my backyard basically.
So I want to be able to be there for more of that.
While also still race and be competitive enough to, when I do race,
I can feel like I can go win.
So yeah, I'll still race a good bit, but a little bit less, which I think will be a good balance.
You own high limits.
When you come to these races, how much of do you look around as an owner of a series
and say, you know what, that was pretty cool.
We need to look at this.
How much do you pay attention to that?
Because I feel like you have a different perspective than a lot of the guys in the garage
as to how important everything else is besides just the car on the track.
Yeah.
No, I mean, I think since becoming more involved in owning a series and all that,
I definitely pay more attention, but I'm still way more focused on what it takes to drive.
But yeah, there's little things of how they do, how series or tracks do driver intros or lighting
or things like that.
But yeah, I think for me though, I just try to stay focused when I have to race track with my helmet bag
and go racing.
Is the series ownership fun?
Yeah, I mean, it's fun for sure.
But I'm not super involved in it either because this is my job and this should take my most,
if not all of my concentration.
So I'm not as involved as I could be, but I think that's a good thing because this is
what allows me to be involved in that.
But I'm still, I'm kept aware of all the decisions, all of that.
I still have input on a lot of things and it's a good balance.
It's exactly what I want it to be.
I don't really want to be any more involved than I currently am because I do think it would take away
focus from what really matters for my career and what's going to keep propelling my career.
Talking about that, what's going to propel your career is insane.
You do a lot of racing outside of being here with Cup.
Is that for fun or do you feel that adds to your overall racing abilities, racing knowledge
that it actually improves you as a driver?
All of it, yeah.
I do it for fun, number one.
I love going back and racing sprint cars are the most fun vehicles to drive.
And then, yeah, the competitive aspect of it, racing situations, being in cars that are violent
and crazy and fast.
I think it helps slow things down when I get back in a Cup car.
Typically, you know, I feel like I'm contending for wins when I race dirt stuff.
So I think when you're putting yourself in winning scenarios, that helps when you're in a scenario
to line up on a late race restart in the Cup series too.
So, yeah, I think that definitely, it all helps.
Like my NASCAR racing helps my sprint car stuff, my sprint car stuff helps NASCAR.
I know you don't have a lot of spare time, but is there anything that you'd like to race that you're not?
Racing.
Or has there like ever been a sliding doors moment where you got offered an opportunity and you think,
damn, I wish I'd taken that?
Well, last year I was pretty, you know, so I did the Indy stuff, but really all year I was looking ahead
to like planning to do the Adelaide supercar stuff.
And then the more it just got a little closer, I was just like, man, I'm like, I'm burnout right now.
I need to focus on my family and just kind of recharging and not going straight into the off season
of being in Australia for three weeks, come home for a week, go back to Australia to race a sprint car.
So I ended up not doing the Adelaide thing.
So maybe something doing like that in the future when as my racing career like slows down more would be fun.
But outside of that, I don't really have any thoughts or bucket list, you know, race cars or events at the moment.
I think that sort of stuff will probably come when I'm done full time racing and I'll actually have the time to commit to something like that.
How do you balance work and family?
Like it's a question we all have to answer at a certain point of our lives because in our 20s, 30s, we can all be so career minded and focused
because you're trying to lay down a foundation for what your family can have ultimately.
But then there comes a point where as you said, like I'm missing so much of my kids life.
How do you balance that?
I interviewed Michael Schumacher years ago and I said, do you ever wish you look back on your career that you'd done a little bit less testing,
a little bit less racing, you've been at home with your family more?
And he said, no, because actually me doing the racing and me doing the media days and me doing the testing, it allowed me time with my family
and to do things with my family.
I never would have been able to do had I not done those things.
So how do you balance that?
Yeah, that's a good perspective I think to have.
And I think for me and probably for any athlete, like, I don't know if you ever really figure out the right way to balance your life.
So I think that's why like this year I'm trying to cut back my racing a little bit so I can be there for more activities for them.
And then we'll assess kind of how it went, you know, and maybe, you know, maybe I still have room to race more next year or even less.
So I don't know.
But yes, I mean, like he said, like when I do go race, I mean, I'm not doing it like I'm making money still too.
So it make good money doing it.
So yeah, I feel like that helps provide for now that I'm paying for my kids racing and owning their equipment.
Like that's, you know, I mean, crazy amount of money right now.
So yeah, I feel like I have to work and do it.
But yeah, it's just figuring out the balance is tough for sure.
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Yeah, I'm a really bad coach.
I think I'm really bad at it.
I don't know.
I'm just such like, I think like I'm a field driver.
I don't really like think a whole lot.
So it's hard for me to like try and tell Owen to like do something.
I'm like, just run harder, you know, like do that.
And he's like, what?
Like, what does that even mean?
So Caitlin's much better at like taking what I say and then like putting it in kids words to describe it.
So yeah, I'm not a good coach, but I'm a pretty relaxed dad.
Like I'm not super intense.
I'm not like Kyle would be.
Owen's pretty soft, I feel like.
So you got to be careful with how like aggressively you try to teach him.
Audrey, she can like retain what you're saying a lot better.
And so I enjoy that part because you can like talk to her and I can see that she's absorbing it and then can go apply it.
But yeah, and then also like I'm not there.
I'm not there enough to where I feel like I can just jump in and coach.
I've noticed like when I do get to go and I then I jump in to try and like help Owen, he'll run worse, you know, and I'm like, okay, well, I must be the problem.
So like he's become comfortable listening to other people.
So I just shouldn't allow allowing to do that.
So yeah, it makes me fun just to go there and be a fan sometimes.
It's like all kids.
The last person they want to listen to is their old man.
That's exactly right.
Is Audrey as much of a badass as she seems?
I think so.
Yeah.
Yeah, she seems tough.
She's very tough.
She's tiny, but she's tough.
And I think maybe the tininess has made her tougher.
But yeah, I mean, she's a she's a good race car driver.
She plays ice hockey.
She's the one kid out there just like hit, you know, hip-checking everybody and aggressive.
She likes to play baseball, all that.
And she's also girly too.
So yeah, it's a fun she's she's she's a lot of fun is all the kids are in their own unique ways and different personalities.
But yeah, I feel like she's really good.
Like she's out.
She's seven years old.
You're racing with 11 and 12 year olds and doing a pretty good job.
Yeah.
We cover all forms of racing on speed.
And I've got to ask the question law was made out of it last year about who's better?
Kyle Larson or Max.
I know you can see the reaction already.
Kyle Larson or Max Verstappen and from a certain part of the fan base.
It was a time.
You're so ridiculous.
That's a stupid thing to say.
Of course, it's Max Verstappen.
So it's a two-part question.
Number one, do you think NASCAR drivers get the respect internationally that they deserve and that people outside of NASCAR maybe see it as being quite simple because you're turning left and how hard can that be?
And obviously talking to you guys and we know it's a lot harder than people think it is.
And two-fold on that, how do you ascertain who is the best driver in the world?
And do we even need to ascertain who is the best driver in the world?
Or are championships now so disparate that it's almost impossible to figure that out?
Yeah.
I mean, the answer to the first question, I think Americans in general don't get the respect that they deserve from Europeans in any form, I feel like, of sport.
But yeah, racing especially too.
I mean, Formula One is huge, right?
I mean, it's by far the biggest, you know, most watched motorsport that there is.
So it's understandable that, you know, their fans are so focused on that that they're not paying attention to what we're doing over here in America and rightfully so.
That's fine, whatever.
But yeah, I think that makes it to where, yeah, they don't think that there can ever be another driver as good as the worst Formula One driver.
So, but, you know, hopefully we'll get to the point where NASCAR and American Auto Racing gets that respect that it deserves because there's so much different diverse racing in America.
I think compared to Europe that in my mind, it would have to develop, you know, a driver that's just as good or potentially better than any other part of the world.
And then, yeah, to answer the second part, I don't know how you ever figure out who the best is.
And I don't know if you need to.
I think the debate's fun.
You know, it's fun to have the banter between, you know, American fans or European fans or open-wheel fans, whatever.
Would you like to see Max come and try Cup Racing?
I would like to see anybody come and try Cup Racing just to honestly get their opinion of what they think of our racing and how it is.
I would imagine it would have to be much different than what they're used to, but, you know, he's extremely good.
And I think when you, he gets the praise from so many people, like you have to accept that, yes, he probably is the best, you know, for how much people just hype him up.
Not hype. I think that's a bad word.
But, you know, how much they brag about him.
So competitors, you know, team executives, all that.
So, yeah, what he does is amazing.
And I think what really shows how good he is is like his teammate is never even on the same stratosphere as him.
So, we're all the other teams. They're within a couple of positions.
Well, let me make this tougher on you.
We're going to keep it in America.
Well, we don't have to keep it in America.
We're going to keep it in the sprint car world.
Who's the best sprint car driver right now, aside from yourself?
Well, I think, I mean, David Gravel would be the easy answer for sure.
He's fan favorite right now.
Yeah.
That was an interesting little banner.
Yeah, that was fun last year.
No, but David, I think Rico is every bit as good or better than him right now.
I just think the outlaws kind of get the hype.
But I'm pretty sure Rico beat him in most races last year.
So, but yeah, when you have two series, it's kind of fun and hard to also tell, you know, which one's the best.
But do you think that's made sprint car racing better?
I think so.
I mean, yeah, I was just talking to JP, my manager yesterday about it.
I mean, like four years ago, there was probably 14 full-time traveling teams.
This year, I think there's like 32 between the two series.
So I think that that has to be healthy.
I think the fans, you know, enjoy.
There's just more better drivers racing every weekend for better money.
And it's been great.
I think you've seen with us coming in, the outlaws finally stepped up and have raised purses, have a safety team.
You know, have they're like finally innovating where they were just so stuck with what they were doing because they didn't have to do anything.
So yeah, I think us coming in is really push the sport to the next level, which is what it needed.
What is the best sprint car track in the country?
Well, I mean, everybody's gonna have probably a different answer.
But in my opinion, my favorite track is Knoxville Raceway.
I think they have the best track prep.
They have the biggest race.
And yeah, I mean, you can just, it's just got grip.
It's super slick in the slick spots.
The line changes so much throughout 25 lap race.
So yeah, I like that track.
But some people will say Eldora, you know, some people will say I-55.
What's the best hole in the wall?
Hole in the wall.
Hole in the wall track that you've been to that is like, oh my God, this place is badass.
Yeah.
I mean, sprint car people would know.
But Tularey, Thunderbolt.
Oh, I've been, I've raced there.
Yeah.
Yeah, it's right.
I mean, Tularey is probably my next favorite track.
It's just like, it's kind of like, the way you run it would be like Homestead.
So like you're just, you're on, literally like on the wall.
The cushion will get kind of built up and then it'll, it'll ramp up to the wall.
And you're, you enter on it and you, you're just, you're just plugged in, just feeding wheel.
And it's, it tears up a lot of equipment, but it's, it's a lot of fun.
And when you can figure out how to get around there, you can fly.
We're running out of time.
So we've got to close this up.
One thing I want to ask you, obviously, seeing you at the 500s, what you're doing your thing here
and it's incredible sprint, you know, everything that you do, how much do you think it's brought
to you and how much would you like to see from other people going and trying other forms of racing?
Because we love to see it as fans.
We love to see it.
That adaptability, the risk as well that you take going out of your comfort zone and
into something just to give it a go, just because as you said earlier, like you love racing.
Well, I mean, I think I feel like a lot of drivers are doing it now.
Honestly, I feel like since the last four or five years, I feel like you see at least NASCAR drivers venturing out,
doing more things, whether it's getting back to their roots, running new pavement, late models,
or modified, the new Samurna, or running dirt modifies, dirt, late models, sprint cars,
micros, whatever on the dirt tracks.
So I feel like you have a lot of it.
And then I mean, you guys got guys like SVG coming over here and racing full time in cups.
So it's happening and it's cool whether I'm having a small part of it or not.
Like either way, I think it's great for the sport of auto racing.
So yeah, I've enjoyed seeing it all and seeing people do good or struggle because I think it shows just how tough it is to bounce around.
Right?
Yeah.
So you mentioned one last thing.
I'm sorry.
One last thing from me.
You mentioned SVG, obviously world class road racer.
How has that changed the game in this garage from what he's done so far to what you guys are doing now to try to make up that ground?
Yeah.
Well, I definitely think when anybody comes and figures out something and whatever and does a great job,
it changes things and people get innovative and trying to match or get better at their craft.
So it's definitely happened.
I know some drivers are trying to learn how to ride for break and all that.
So yeah, I mean, but I'll say you can learn how to ride for break.
I don't think you're going to beat him.
He's that good.
Like it's crazy.
What makes him that good?
I don't know.
And the things that you've looked at.
Like what is your team talk about that is like, okay, we need to get better?
Yeah.
Well, I mean, like when I just everything, I mean, he's better at everything.
Everything.
I mean, literally everything he can manage his tires better.
And I don't know if that comes from right foot braking or just the way he loads the car and accelerates and all that.
But his tire management is way better.
His rate of diesel is way better.
His proximity is way better.
He's just way better at everything than us.
So like carrying speed through the low speed stuff.
You name it.
He's better at it than all of us.
And I think the softer tires since we've gone to the softer tires just made him stand out.
Yeah.
Way more.
So I don't see him being beat unless something unless like an odd circumstance happens where
he gets taken out or something.
You know, he's always in a qualifier in the front three positions and he's probably going to take the lead in the first and laps.
And then he's going to run 80% the whole race while you're pushing 100% and then he's going to drive off and leave you.
So, but yeah, I mean, as far as setup and all that, I mean, your teams are always looking at it.
The good thing for us is like, we can see what setup they're running.
We can plug it right in.
But, you know, if you're not driving it the way he is, it's hard to replicate.
So I personally haven't tried learning how to ride for a break.
I've, you know, fiddled around with it like when I'm in a street car or on high racing.
And it's like, I my brain to my feet doesn't work.
I can't do that.
Yeah.
I don't know if you've tried it.
I've tried it.
It's like I have two left feet.
Yeah.
Healing toe.
And then you talk to like the European guys are like, what do you mean you don't know how to ride for a break?
It's easy.
Like, no, it's not.
I've been pretty eye-opening.
Love that.
It has been an eye-opening conversation.
Thank you so much for joining us.
I'm really appreciate it.
Good luck for the season.
Thank you very much.
That's it for us for Speed with Harvick and Buxton, fueled by Poet.

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