After winning the Cup and Xfinity Series races, Larson has had a lot to say about his attempt at the sweep at Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend. The driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports vehicle, Larson, has been critical of the Xfinity Series in particular, saying that he intended to dominate the field and humiliate NASCAR in Saturday’s race because they don’t let Cup Series people run as much as they used to. He told Kevin Harvick on the Happy Hour show, “I just want to embarrass NASCAR a little bit, because they just don’t let Cup guys run anymore.” To let them know, I like to go run those Xfinity races and simply obtain ten-second leads that they got a lot of room to improve.
And that’s only better for our sport, in my opinion. “You know, when those young guys can compete with Cup guys, they’re better suited for the Cup Series once they get there.” Kyle Larson keeps criticizing NASCAR Larson has now doubled down on his criticism of NASCAR and their policies in a recent appearance on SiriusXM Radio, citing Busch and a plethora of other famous Cup Series drivers that he competed against in the Xfinity Series to further illustrate his point. “I loved that the Cup Series, or Cup guys, got to run every week when I was a full-time Xfinity guy. It really motivated me to improve as a racecar driver because I could compare myself to them” Larson explained.
“I could follow them around and pick up tips from drivers like Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, and others. I even competed in an Xfinity race against Jimmie Johnson. Because they were fighting against Cup people every Saturday and either beating them or getting beat, I thought that the Xfinity guys, or even the Busch series before me, were prepared for the Cup. Regardless, they were learning.” Larson went on to mention 2022 Xfinity Series winner Ty Gibbs as a driver who has found it difficult to adjust to the Cup Series due to the problem. Now that you don’t understand that, I don’t think Xfinity folks are as good as they once were, and definitely not as prepared for Cup as they once were,” Larson continued.
“I believe that’s the reason you see someone like Ty Gibbs. I think Ty Gibbs is great. Despite becoming a champion in the Xfinity Series, he has not yet taken home a race victory. I believe that NASCAR’s limitations are largely to blame for that.
