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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

Kyle Larson reflects on life as the defending NASCAR Cup Series champion, his approach to the new season at Daytona, his pursuit of racing in multiple disciplines including the double, and the ongoing debate about whether NASCAR drivers get the respect they deserve compared to global stars like Max Verstappen. On this episode of SPEED With Harvick and Buxton, Kevin Harvick and Will Buxton sit down with Larson to discuss what Daytona means to him, how he is approaching the season as the defending champion, balancing racing with family life as his kids get involved in the sport, his passion for competing across different series, whether there are new racing challenges he wants to pursue, and how he views himself among the best drivers in the world. Chapters:0:00 Intro0:45 Kyle Larson Joins The Show2:45 Daytona 500 vs Indy 5005:00 Thoughts On The New Format10:20 Balancing Work & Life12:30 How Is Coach Kyle?15:00 American Drivers Get Enough Respect?18:00 Best Sprint Cup Driver?19:40 Favorite Track?22:00 Thoughts On SVG24:45 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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