Kyle Larson eyeing historic victory at his own NASCAR 'crown jewel'

The last time the NASCAR Cup Series hit Bristol Motor Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports star Kyle Larson was utterly dominant.

The 2025 Food City 500 consisted of 500 laps of racing action, and Larson led for 411 of them, sweeping stages one and two as well as taking the black and white checkered flag.

Last year's night race at Bristol was even better for the Hendrick Motorsports star, who, on that occasion, led 462 of the 500 racing laps.

In fact, since his switch to Hendrick Motorsports, Larson's Bristol record has been sensational, with three wins and six consecutive finishes inside the top five.

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Larson eyeing historic Bristol win

Heading into this weekend's Cup Series playoff eliminator in Tennessee, Larson's prior results mean he can join an elite Bristol list. Only four drivers have won three consecutive races on the challenging banked turns at Bristol, and Larson could become the fifth on Saturday night.

It would be a result that means a lot to the Hendrick Motorsports star, who revealed that the Bristol night race is the one every year that he really wants to win every season, even more so than the so-called crown jewels.

"The atmosphere is always up for the (Bristol) night race,” Larson explained, via NASCAR Media.

“The night race just means more to me. I don’t know if everyone feels the same way, I want to win all the races, but I would like to win the night race over the spring one if I had to pick one or the other, just because winning under the lights at Bristol is pretty awesome.

“It’s not considered a crown jewel, but in my mind it’s the one I want to win really badly every year.”

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Kyle Larson Bristol mindset

Separately, Larson discussed his mental state heading into the crucial playoff race.

In the two playoff races so far, the No. 5 has not finished inside the top 10 [19th at Darlington, 12th at Gateway], but he insists his mindset is the same as always heading to the Tennessee track.

“I’m not really going into it with any different mindset than what we typically would go to Bristol,” Larson explained.

“I’ve been to Bristol with many different packages and tire combinations, probably, and Bristol’s still Bristol.

“It races amazing, and I’ve always been competitive there. I just feel like I’ve got a natural feel for the pace and rhythm that it takes to go good there.

"I hope our car’s close again and we can execute a good weekend like we have the last two times there.”

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