Kyle Larson admits "dumb and aggressive" Nashville move, but was Denny Hamlin a factor? HMS driver weigh in

Kyle Larson reflected on his "dumb and aggressive" move on Denny Hamlin in the overtime restart at Nashville Superspeedway. Larson's ambitious move cost Ross Chastain a shot at victory, as he was spun around in the process.

In the first overtime restart for the Ally 400, Larson lined up on the second row behind Hamlin and Chastain. On the restart, the #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy driver drove hard into Turn 1 to get clean air and battle Hamlin for the lead. However, his aggression ended up wrecking Chastain on the outside.

Fox Sports reporter Bob Pockrass asked Kyle Larson if he was deliberately aggressive on the restart, given his rival Denny Hamlin was on the front row. Larson admitted that his move on Hamlin was "dumb and aggressive" but was unsure if he would have raced other drivers differently.

"I don't know. I mean, I'm not sure because I didn't have somebody in front of me to know how I would've raced. I would ultimately known that I would need clean air on the nose no matter whose in front of me. But yeah, guess maybe less likely to be as dumb and aggressive as I was. But you don't really know until you're put in the situation," Larson told Pockrass at the Chicago Street Race.

After the race at Nashville, Larson took responsibility for wrecking an innocent Ross Chastain, who finished 33rd. Larson expressed regret for ruining another driver's day but emphasized that he was racing hard for the win.

Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin had a tense battle in Nashville earlier in the race, with the latter expressing his displeasure by bumping Larson under caution. The two drivers have emerged as championship favorites, with three wins apiece. The duo are expected to continue exchanging wins and battling fiercely throughout the season.

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Kyle Larson expects more "respect" on the track from Denny Hamlin

The story so far in the Kyle Larson-Denny Hamlin rivalry has seen the latter outsmart the former on multiple occasions, with Larson unable to repay the favors. In Nashville, however, the #5 HMS Chevy did race Hamlin aggressively and is now content that the scores are settled and would like to move on.

Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup champion, also expects respect and a bit of room on the track from the #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driver. In a recent appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR radio, he said:

"Nashville’s is really the first time that I’ve got to, you know, I feel like in my mind, show that I’m over it. Or like over the way that I’ve been raced. Now going forward I think I’m ready to move on, I’ve got zero issue at this point. I would like a little bit of respect on the race track and a little bit more room than maybe I’ve been given."

With seven races left in the regular season, Kyle Larson occupies the top spot in the drivers standings, with Denny Hamlin sitting in third place, trailing his rival by 43 points.