Crew chief reacts to Kyle Larson's first victory over Denny Hamlin in seven attempts

Kyle Larson's victory in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway is the first time Larson has edged out Denny Hamlin whenever they have finished 1-2 in a race. After the race, Larson's crew chief, Cliff Daniels, shared his thoughts on his driver's first victory over Hamlin in seven attempts.

Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin have shared a good friendship over the years. However, they have also shared a very intense rivalry on the racetrack. On all six previous occasions when the two drivers have raced each other for the win in a 1-2 finish scenario, Hamlin has always come out on top.

Here's a list of every race in which Hamlin has won directly over Kyle Larson:

1. Richmond Raceway on September 10, 2016
2. New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 16, 2017
3. Darlington Raceway on September 5, 2021
4. Kansas Speedway on May 7, 2023
5. Bristol Motor Speedway on September 16, 2023
6. Dover Motor Speedway on April 28, 2024.

After Larson's first victory over Hamlin at Bristol, his crew chief was asked if this means that Larson finally has the upper hand on Hamlin. Daniels responded by saying:

"To me, they have a great friendship, and Denny has always been a really tough competitor, and I think that's great. He's always pushed us to be better, he's pushed Kyle. I think our teams push each other in a very healthy way. So yeah, to come out on top is cool."

"But in any chance you get to race with a tough competitor like Denny and a lot of the other guys who are at the front of the field, it's always going to push you to get better, and so we're certainly thankful for the challenge," he added.

With this victory, Larson jumped up to the fourth spot in the drivers’ standings and is only 12 points behind the Joe Gibbs Racing driver in second. His Hendrick Motorsport teammate, William Byron, leads the championship with 346 points.

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Kyle Larson dedicates his victory to his late friend Jon Edwards

Early on Friday morning, April 11, at 3:00 am, Hendrick Motorsports made a heartbreaking announcement that their Director of Racing Communications, Jon Edwards, had passed away. Edwards was also the PR representative of Kyle Larson and a close friend as well.

Larson was one of the first people to pay tribute to Edwards via a heartfelt post on X. After winning the race, Larson dedicated his victory to Jon, saying that he would have liked to celebrate this victory with Edwards.

“This one’s definitely for Jon,” Larson shared (via Jayski). “He’s just a great guy. Successful weekend here. Wish he was going to be here with us to celebrate, but I know he’s celebrating with us in spirit.”

Kyle Larson will be back for more Cup racing action after a week’s break on Sunday, April 27, for the Jack Link’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.