Folks, after ‘the track too tough to tame,’ NASCAR landed at its fastest short track. Bristol Motor Speedway was supposed to be a historic weekend for Kyle Larson as he was attempting yet another sweep in the season. If you recall, he recently attempted it at Homestead. And while he managed to bag the Truck Series and Cup Series race, he narrowly missed out at the Xfinity race, as Sam Mayer got in the rear of him on the final restart. But Larson was quick to move on, as he knew he’d get a second chance at the sweep in Bristol. But even here, an ex-Xfinity Series driver has ruined it for him!

Look, Larson has wanted to get a sweep for the longest time now. Just running three consecutive races on a single weekend is a feat in itself, but to go and win all three is a whole different level of achievement. And that’s probably why this feat has only been achieved twice, both times by the one and only Kyle Busch. First in 2010 and then in 2017. What’s coincidental is that both times he did it in Bristol. And we all know Larson is all for challenges and making history. But the Hendrick Motorsports driver would have to wait to become the second driver to get a sweep in NASCAR history.

Chandler Smith ruined Kyle Larson’s weekend!

After missing out at Homestead, Larson was disappointed and was really looking forward to Bristol. He had said, “Unfortunately, we just came up a little bit short there in the Xfinity race. But, all in all, had a great weekend and have another opportunity here at Bristol coming up in a couple of weeks.” But sadly, he had to be satisfied with a P2 in the recent Truck Series race.

Here’s how things went down. So, Kyle Larson was piloting the #07 truck for Spire Motorsports, and he wasn’t having the best day at the Weather Guard Truck Race. He only managed to get a P11 start in the qualifying! However, he was quick to gain positions in the race, finishing stage one in P6. But in stage 2, he lost the pace, dropping positions and finishing outside of the top 10.

Kyle Larson was determined to have the sweep, and he fought his way up. But Front Row Motorsport’s Chandler Smith had the fastest truck in the race; he won stage 1, finished stage 2 in P2, and ran upfront all day. And then it all boiled down to that final restart with 7 laps to go. Ahead of the caution, Smith was slightly ahead of Corey Heim, and hence, he was given the lead on the restart. And Smith made most of it! He managed to hold the field and take the checkered flag.

Eventually, Larson also passed Heim to take P2. While it is sad for Larson, you have got to feel good for Smith. Despite having a splendid run in the Xfinity Series last season, 2 wins, 17 top-5s, and a 5th place season end, Smith did not have a ride by the end of it. And if you recall, no teams were knocking on his door for most of the offseason. “I don’t have a ride next year,” Smith revealed in October 2024. “I could be working for my dad’s construction business and could be hanging it up at the end of this year.” Then Front Row Motorsports came calling, but with a demotion offer to the Truck Series instead. Smith had no choice but to accept, and now, he’s bagged his first win of the season for them. Who knows, maybe he could bag a championship this year and work his way up again!

And having a ride in the Truck Series is better than not having one at all. And Smith was grateful after the win. He said, “I’m more excited for this team than I am for myself. This group came together. We hired my crew chief three weeks before Daytona. Take that in for a second. This group just got assembled literally in January. The Good Lord works in mysterious ways.” 

And naturally Kyle Larson was bummed out for missing yet another chance at the sweep, he said, “Bummed. Because it’s already over. But I don’t know, Homestead was probably a little more of a bummer because it was in our fingertips, really… You just wanna win… it would have been nice to win, but I’m happy with the rebound we had.” Larson spun out on pit road, and some untimely cautions put him in a rough position. So, despite missing out on the sweep, Larson was grateful to be able to claim P2 at the end.

But still, this has to feel like retribution after what went down in Darlington! And hopefully, the Cup race would be a success, too!

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Can Kyle Larson bounce back after Darlington?

Folks, Kyle Larson did not have a good run at Darlington. Just four laps in, he spun out, diving nose first into the wall. This ruined his day; for nearly two hours, his car was in the shop getting repaired. And then he joined the race more than a hundred laps down. He was in no position to make it better, but at least this would have allowed the #5 team to practice things, maybe pit entries and exits. And eventually complete the race. But the race gods just weren’t in Larson’s favor. At the end of the race, he got wrecked at the same spot again, ending his day in a DNF.

Tyler Reddick got into the wall, and this caused Larson to check up. And Bubba Wallace, coming from behind, had nowhere to go but to spin Larson out. Anyway, what might have allowed Larson to forget the Darlington mess is that Bristol was up next. And surely, the P2 start to the weekend would uplift things for Larson. And he’s also hopeful for the next two races as well. Post the race, Larson said, “We fell back on that long run in the second stage. I got super tight. Then I spun on pit road…I felt like if we didn’t get that one caution, I maybe had a good shot. Still, to get to second’s good. Unfortunate not to get the win, but we still have two more chances in the weekend, and we’ll have some good shots.”

And surely, he’s got the best chance in the Cup race. Bristol Motor Speedway happens to be Larson’s stronghold. He’s the most successful driver there among the active lot. In the 17 races, he’s won twice and has an average finish of 11.0. And what must be even more motivating is his stats in the next-gen car, where Larson has an average finish of 3.3. Rather, Larson is coming from a dominant win last season, leading 462 laps out of the 500. So naturally, he’s the front runner to win the race.

What do you think, folks? Can Kyle Larson win the Bristol Cup Series race? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.