LARSON UNFAZED BY NEAR MISSES
Driver chasing breakthrough win is enjoying run
MOORESVILLE, N.C. Owen Larson, a 17-month-old who spends most of his time either smiling or imitating engine noises, was perched atop his father’s shoulders Tuesday demonstrating a mixture of both.
As go-karts zipped around the track at GoPro Motorplex, Owen’s dad, third-year Sprint Cup driver Kyle Larson, awaited his turn to race in an event called the Eneos Little 600. As Larson pondered a reporter’s question, Owen snatched an Eneos-branded hat off Larson’s head and dropped it to the ground with glee.
As Larson bent down and reached for the hat, the father’s smile matched his son’s.
“I’m in a really good place right now,” Larson, 23, told USA TODAY Sports.
If you’d expect Larson to be miserable after three consecutive weeks of on-track heartbreak, you’d be wrong. He has a young son who learns something new every day; a longtime girlfriend, Katelyn Sweet, and a sweet gig racing at the highest level of American motor sports. “I’m hav- ing a lot of fun,” Larson said.
The only thing missing? His first career win. But heading into Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, Larson feels closer than ever to that goal.
At Charlotte Motor Speedway last weekend, he edged Chase Elliott in a spectacular finish in a qualifying race and nearly beat Joey Logano for $1 million in the Sprint All- Star Race. The previous week, he led 85 laps at Dover International Speedway and came up just short to Matt Kenseth. And the week before at Kansas Speedway, Larson was going for the lead on a late restart when Denny Hamlin’s overly aggressive move wrecked them both.
But just contending is a turn- around for Larson and his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team this year. Half of his finishes have been worse than 25th, leaving him 21st in the Cup standings. With the regular-season’s halfway point arriving Sunday, it’s looking like he might need a win to secure his first Chase berth. But unlike a month ago, at least it doesn’t feel like a long shot.
“I get excited and feel like it’s going to happen, and it still hasn’t,” Larson said. “I’ve been telling all of our guys, ‘Three weeks ago we couldn’t even finish in the top 20, and now we’re fighting for wins.’ ”
As a rookie, Larson seemed on the verge of immediate stardom. He had 17 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 14.2, winning rookie of the year. But a sophomore slump left him and his team seeking answers in 2015. His development stalled, and Larson’s statistics slipped. His average finish dropped to 19.3.
This season didn’t seem much better until the recent flash of speed. Suddenly, it seems Larson can run up front and be a consistent threat. So what is he doing differently? Not a thing, he said.
The secret, he said, is the cars. New crew chief Chad Johnston brought fresh ideas, and his input has started to show.
“Nothing has changed in me other than our cars are a lot faster right now,” Larson said.
But Justin Marks, who coowns the Larson Marks sprint car team, has seen a gradual change.
“What has changed is just his approach,” Marks said. “There’s a little more swagger, a little bit more measured approach. It’s how he carries himself. He knows what to expect on his weekends.”
Retired driver Jeff Gordon said the team was more to blame than Larson was.
“Not trying to take away anything from Ganassi, but when you take a talent like Kyle Larson’s, I think he would have won by now at some other organizations,” Gordon said. “Those guys have let him down, but I’ve been seeing something that’s good lately. So I’m hoping that continues, because he is very capable of winning.”
Larson, who has four career runner-up finishes, has become a sentimental fan favorite.
“I think being so close a lot of times the last few years, I guess in a way I’m maybe considered an underdog,” he said. “That’s a fun role to play. I always root for the underdog.”