"I had a lot of fun" - Kyle Larson speaks positively of NASCAR Cup race at Atlanta despite early exit

Kyle Larson relished battling in the pack and the overall racing experience in the Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, despite being involved in a wreck in the final stage of the race.

The Cup Series drivers put on a blockbuster show at the 1.54-mile oval on Sunday. The 400-mile race culminated in a three-wide photo finish at the checkered flag, with Daniel Suarez narrowly edging out Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch to reach the victory lane.

Kyle Larson was in the thick of the action for much of the race until a pile-up triggered by Brad Keselowski in the final stage forced him out of contention. Although Larson was bummed about wrecking out, he relished racing at the drafting track, noting that it was more exciting than the season-opening Daytona 500.

"Actually, I had a lot of fun today that was super intense and it's been a great race from the start to where we are at now. Opposite of last week, no fuel savings and just guys going at it. So it's been fun," he said post-race (via Bob Pockrass).

Larson described the race as a wild ride from the driver's POV, adding that the racing action was intense and chaotic.

"I was enjoying it, felt like a lot went on before we got down with the second stage. Pretty crazy but I don't know how it's coming across on TV but from the driver's seat it's wild!"

The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion has previously gone on record stating that he isn't a fan of Superspeedway racing, but Sunday's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway has left a mark on him.

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Kyle Larson elaborates on the intense racing in Atlanta

The Ambetter Health 400 was jam-packed with racing action, with Cup drivers jostling for positions on every lap, even going four-wide at one point in the race.

Kyle Larson elaborated on the intensity of each lap, describing how drivers had to make moves while also blocking other moves, all while the cars were not handling well. Larson was in the thick of the action and stated that he wouldn't want to experience such intensity every weekend.

"It actually was a lot of fun, I wouldn't want to do that every week but it was much more fun than last week. I don't know if there's ever a lap like, where you weren't thinking about moves, or trying to block moves. You were just trying to stay in line, the cars were not driving very good," he told Bob Pockrass.

Kyle Larson was baffled that he navigated through a four-wide pack but was caught up in a solo accident, which marked his fourth DNF in the last five visits to the Atlanta Motor Speedway.