Kyle Larson tallied his fourth consecutive top 10 finish with a strong performance in Chicago. (Photo: Kevin Bowman | The Podium Finish)
CHICAGO – For a driver who races in a multitude of disciplines on different track surfaces, Kyle Larson looked like a professional street course driver.
The focus may have been on Shane van Gisbergen’s incredible drive and victory in Sunday’s Grant Park 220 at the Chicago Street Course. However, Larson was at ease and up to the challenges at the 2.14-mile, 12-turn street course.
Qualifying seventh for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race, Larson briefly slipped to eighth place before he regained the lost spot in Stage 1. As many of Larson’s competitors encountered meetings with the Turn 6 tire barrier, the Hendrick Motorsports driver drove in unassuming fashion around the damp streets.
Once Stage 2 kicked off, Larson extended his elbows with tenacity and relentlessness. In concert with a solid pit stop by the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 team, the 30-year-old racer worked his way up to the second position.
In fact, he closed the gap to leader Christopher Bell in remarkable fashion. Drawing within a few car lengths of his dirt track and Cup rival, a battle for the lead and Stage 2 was about to brew.
However, a caution on Lap 46 for Alex Bowman’s stalled No. 48 Ally Chevrolet entry wrapped up Stage 2, leaving Larson to settle for a runner-up finish. While a potential battle against Bell was curtailed, he tallied 13 stage points.
On top of that, NASCAR shortened the race by 25 laps, with the distance set to 75 laps. This forced Bell, Larson, van Gisbergen and other lead lap contenders toward the front of the field to pit for tires and fuel.
As Stage 3 was underway, the running order was greatly shuffled, with Bell, Larson and van Gisbergen restarting outside of the top 10. This moment provided pivotal considering a Turn 11 traffic jam on Lap 50 which involved Bell and Larson as van Gisbergen slithered past the congested corner.
The patriotic colors adorning Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet was a fixture toward the front of the field in Chicago. (Photo: Kevin Bowman | The Podium Finish)
After NASCAR officials sorted out the scoring order, Larson had his work cut out for him as he restarted outside of the top 10. Much like his drive in the 2021 Verizon 200 in Indianapolis, the Elk Grove, California native kept a cool head and methodically picked off positions.
With 18 laps remaining, Larson worked his way up to ninth. Not long after, he was inside the top five and ready to pounce for a potential podium in Chicago. A trio of caution periods slowed any potential by Larson in the closing moments, settling for a fourth-place finish.
Despite the treacherous conditions in the race’s early laps, Larson was rearing to take on the streets of Chicago which was evident with his performances in Stages 1 and 2.
“Yeah, I was trying to get my confidence built up while it was wet and I knew as long as it didn’t rain, it was eventually going to dry out,” Larson said. “So, just didn’t want to hurt my car in the wet and tried to maintain the best I could, which we did. As soon as the lanes started to dry out, we were much better than the people braking.
“We just had a lot more confidence than the people braking around me and was able to get to second and the pit strategy cycle stuff happened and it kind of messed our race up a little bit. But we were able to rebound to finish fourth. So, a great points day for our team and we needed that.”
Much like the fans in attendance throughout the 2.14-mile street course, Larson enjoyed the new, out of the box experience. For a major sports city that played host to the first street course race in the modern era, it has the Californian’s endorsement.
Wounded but not down for the count, Larson pressed forward for a fourth place in Sunday’s shortened race. (Photo: Kevin Bowman | The Podium Finish)
“It was an amazing experience and I hope everybody here enjoyed it as much as I did,” he said. “I hope the fans here that maybe had never been to a race before enjoyed it. I hope the city enjoyed it enough to welcome us back because I felt like the buzz around the city last handful of days was amazing.
“The crowd stuck around the whole race too. I mean, it was downpouring all race long and I was not sure what kind of crowd we were going to have once we got going and it was great.”
With the Quaker State 400 at Atlanta awaiting Larson and his competitors on Sunday, July 9 (7 p.m. ET on USA), it is safe that he would like another shot at winning at Chicago.
“Without the rain, it would have been way better with the concerts and all that,” Larson said, “So, hopefully we get another go at it next year because I enjoyed it. It got a little messy with the stack up in (Turn) 11.
“Aside from that, we all need to look at that and see how we can do that better to get the lineup right. But, all in all, it was a great event and I just had a great time.”
