"I hate to say that": Kyle Larson reveals his 'wish' about Daytona and Talladega amid Atlanta's blood-pressure spiking weekend

Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson sat down with Corey Lajoie on his podcast Stacking Pennies and opened up about the Atlanta Motor Speedway race. Larson also revealed his wish for the Daytona International and Talladega Superspeedway.

The Ambetter Health 400 race was action-packed, with last-minute maneuvers changing the outcome. The #5 Chevy Camaro ZL1 driver finished third behind Carson Hocevar, while Corey Lajoie finished the race in P38.

Recalling the thrilling race held on February 22, 2025, Larson stated:

"Atlanta is so different. You know I enjoy that one... Dude, it is so fun. Yeah, I hate to say that too, but it is, it's, it's a lot of fun."

Further, Larson mentioned that he preferred the old Atlanta Motor Speedway track to the redeveloped track. He added:

"Just grip to the wheel like just little movements. It's fun, you know? I wish that Daytona and Talladega were, yeah, um, because then I think we would all enjoy it more. The fans would enjoy it more, the racing would be better, but I just think Atlanta's at a good size, you know? It's a small track, and the corner radius, like, you just you don't have the grip that you want, and there's, like, gaps and holes to fill."

The Hendrick Motorsports driver expressed his eagerness to attempt one of the most grueling challenges, The Double, once again. He aims to compete in the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.

---

"Daytona and Talladega suck": Kyle Larson on fans' favorite superspeedway tracks

Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson's 2025 season started disappointingly. He started the Daytona International Speedway race from P22 and crossed the finish line in 20th place.

However, Larson covered the loss in the Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway and finished in third place. During a post-race interview with Kelly Crandall, the 29 Cup Series race winner compared his performance at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway to Atlanta Motor Speedway.

"This is totally different than Daytona and Talladega. I do have more confidence when we come here, even though this is my first finish. Just because I think handling comes into play and it's not just like luck of the lane that you get in necessarily, where Daytona was a lot of that last week. I feel like I make 50% of the time the right lane decision, where last it is like 10% of the time the right choice, so it just works that way," Larson said.

"Absolutely. All of us are in more control here, so it's more fun. Daytona and Talladega suck, like they suck," he added.

Kyle Larson is all set to compete at the COTA race scheduled for this Sunday, March 2, 2025. Last year, he finished among the top 20 drivers in the race.