HMS’ Kyle Larson a regular feature in NASCAR Next Gen dominant races list

Hendrick Motorsports icon, Kyle Larson, is now a part of a unique NASCAR stat based on 100 races in the NextGen era. According to Trey Ryan, a popular stat person on X (formerly Twitter), Larson currently dominates four NASCAR race tracks, the most since 2022, in terms of leading laps.

Kyle Larson began racing in the Cup Series with Chip Ganassi Racing back in 2014 and he currently drives the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports. Larson is a 27-time winner in the Cup Series alone, with 15 victories in the Xfinity Series and three in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. In his first year driving for Hendrick Motorsports, the Elk Grove native bagged his first and only Cup Series championship.

Larson's racing prowess stands the tallest at these four racetracks: Homestead-Miami Speedway, Phoenix Raceway, Darlington Raceway, and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Larson has led 74.53 percent of the total laps in 100 NextGen races at Homestead. At Phoenix, the Chevy star led 63.41 percent of the total laps combined. His numbers at Darlington and Las Vegas are 71.66 and 67.79 percent, respectively.

Here is the post by Ryan that speaks of Larson's dominance:

William Byron, Larson's teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, is the only other driver from the Chevy team to have made the list. Byron tops the list at Watkins Glen International with 73.33 percent, and trails Larson at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with a score of 64.94 percent. Furthermore, the No. 24 speedster has led 61.76 percent of the total laps at COTA, Austin .

Kyle Larson apologizes to his team following Watkins Glen outing

NASCAR handed Kyle Larson a penalty at the end of Stage 2 of last week's playoff race at Watkins Glen International. Larson appeared for the playoffs from 2016 to 2019 and from 2021 to 2024. He is currently in his eighth year in the playoff rumble.

The penalty relegated the 2021 Cup Series champion to the back of the field. He finished 12th in the race, picking up 28 points in the way. As of today, he sits 9th in the playoff picture with 2069 points.

According to Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic, Larson apologized to his team following the penalty.

"Kyle Larson apologizes for the penalty, saying he thought he was being "extremely cautious," Bianchi tweeted on Monday.

Larson will next compete in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race which will take place on September 21 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. From his 16 starts at Bristol so far, the 32-year-old has amassed one win, one pole, six top-5s , 11 top-10s and one DNF. He has led 889 laps at the Tennesseean short-track oval, flaunting an average start of 13.6 and an average finish of 11.6.

Fans can watch Larson in action on NBC and USA from 7:30 PM ET onwards. Radio updates will be available on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.