Kyle Larson earned a sixth-place finish in Saturday night’s NASCAR Cup Series race at the Richmond Raceway. Immediately following the checkered flag, the driver of the No. 5 hopped on a flight and set sight on Knoxville, Iowa for the 65th running of the Knoxville Nationals.
Larson, who qualified on the pole for the sprint car event, was not expected to compete due to his Cup Series obligations that same night. However, a weather delay opened the door for the 34-year-old to make the improbable double a reality.
In a crazy turn of events, Larson would be standing in victory lane at the Knoxville Nationals for the fourth time in his career.
For those who were critical of Larson attempting the event with almost certainty that he would not be able to compete, the Hendrick Motorsports star set the records straight.
Kyle Larson on Knoxville Nationals entry: ‘Best case scenario’
As Larson made the over 1,100-mile trip from Richmond, Virginia to Knoxville, Iowa, his flight was the No. 1 most tracked in the world.
Larson was told of the incredible stat in victory lane at the Knoxville Nationals. Taken aback by how many people were watching his flight, Larson made a humorous comment.
“It’s kinda cool that’s a stat because I figured someone would be tracking Donald Trump or Taylor Swift or something,” Larson said.
Larson showed why he entered Thursday’s preliminary race for the Knoxville Nationals in the first place.
Initially, the 32-time Cup Series winner was content on running the prelim just to get an opportunity to race and knew he would likely miss the A-Main unless of a weather delay.
As Mother Nature would have it, Larson was able to make it to Knoxville, Iowa with more than enough time following the conclusion of Saturday night’s Cook Out 400. For those who questioned “Yung Money” in his Knoxville Nationals entry, he proved it was the right call.
“I hope all the fans that were [expletive] and moaning about us running a prelim now understand why, so anybody watching at home, on the internet, in the stands — I hope you realize this was the best case scenario and this is exactly why we entered the Knoxville Nationals,” Larson said.
Larson earned much-needed top 10 at Richmond
As thrilling as Larson’s impromptu NASCAR/sprint car double was, the California native was in need of a solid result on Saturday night in Richmond. Larson wheeled his No. 5 machine to a sixth-place finish, his first top-10 finish since Sonoma in June.
In addition, Larson entered Richmond with four finishes of 30th or worse in the last five races. The woes dropped the defending Cup Series champion to as low as 10th in the standings.
After Richmond, Larson jumped back up to ninth in the points with two races remaining until The Chase. He is still seeking his first win of the 2026 season and first since the May 2025 race at Kansas.
Perhaps with the thrill of the NASCAR/sprint car double on Saturday night, Larson will carry the momentum over to the Cup side and break into victory lane soon.
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