Kyle Larson clambers into his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ahead of Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tennessee. (Photo: Josh James | The Podium Finish)
LEBANON, Tenn. — When it comes to racing on the concrete tracks like Nashville Superspeedway, Kyle Larson is typically toward the front of the field.
After winning at the 1.333-mile intermediate in 2021, Larson finished fourth in 2022 and fifth last year. He has qualified seventh or better in his prior efforts, including fourth for Sunday’s Ally 400 (3:30 p.m. ET on NBC, PRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
In 2021, Larson started fifth, led for 264 laps and captured his fourth of 10 victories en route to the NASCAR Cup Series championship. Despite struggling with the handling in the past two years, the 26-time Cup race winner has a great feel for attacking this particular track.
“Nashville has been a good track for us,” Larson said in a team press release. “We got the win in the inaugural event and have backed it up with a couple more top fives. We’re heading into the weekend with the hope the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet will be up front in contention for another victory there.”
It has been a strong year for the 2021 Cup champion with more consistency and form from the Elk Grove, California, native. Along with three wins (Las Vegas, Kansas and Sonoma), he has eight top fives and nine top 10s.
Even with missing the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, Larson is the co-points leader going into Sunday’s 300-lap race at Nashville Superspeedway. Along with Chase Elliott, it has been a terrific year for Hendrick Motorsports, celebrating their 40th anniversary season.
Perhaps the next, most determined individual on the No. 5 team is Cliff Daniels, Larson’s crew chief. With the focus of Ray Evernham and the intensity of Chad Knaus, Daniels has been one of the catalysts behind Larson’s success and 20 of 26 Cup race wins.
Before any on-track activities on Saturday, Daniels considered the No. 5 team’s record at Nashville and his hopes for his driver and crew.
Kyle Larson, Cliff Daniels, and the No. 5 team are always on the attack at a place like Nashville Superspeedway, site of the Ally 400. (Photo: Josh James | The Podium Finish)
“Nashville is definitely a fun and unique track,” Daniels observed in a team press release. “We enjoy going there, but it’s been a bit of a struggle in the Next Gen era. We’ve been able to pull off a few good finishes with making good adjustments to the car during the last couple of races.
“We haven’t unloaded quite as fast as we would have liked, so we have done a lot of work to hopefully be quicker off the truck this weekend.”
On Saturday, Larson posted the sixth fastest time and ninth fastest in a 10-lap consecutive average during practice. Posting the fastest time in Group A qualifying, he ultimately qualified fourth.
Nashville serve as one of the four final races before the Paris Olympic break for NASCAR, which will go into a break until the Cook Out 400 on Aug. 11. More importantly, it is one of the best chances for Larson and his team to capitalize at a track where they have been consistently fast and strong.
Given how hot and grueling Sunday’s conditions will be, Larson thrives when the mercury and humidity may be less than ideal. In prime condition, mentally and physically, Larson may be the man to beat when it comes down to the final laps in “The Music City.”
