CONCORD, N.C. -- Kyle Larson is crediting his recent hot streak to old-fashioned studying and preparation after he took the checkered flag at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday. Prior to his win, Larson had not placed inside the top five in six NASCAR Cup Series starts at Sonoma, but he led 57 laps and swept the stages en route to the win.
“I felt like I did a lot of studying this week, watching a lot of in-car video and looking at SMT and areas that I can be better, and I feel like it all came together (Sunday). …” Larson said. “It made my job a lot of fun. The way the strategy worked out and we had to restart towards the back there a couple different times.”
In his rookie year as the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, Larson was in victory lane at Charlotte Motor Speedway the week before he took to the 2.52-mile road course in California’s wine country.
“To win one race is tough, but to win back-to-back is really tough,” Larson said. “(I’m) glad to get it done today in my hometown and I look forward to next week and trying to make it three in a row.”
Chase Elliott finished second to Larson for the second time in a row. This is the fourth consecutive race where the Hendrick Motorsports claimed a 1-2 finish, tying the record set by Karl Kiekhafer Racing in 1956.
“He’s definitely one of the best, if not the best, road course racer right now in our series,” Larson said. “I could tell that I had a better car than him, so that allowed me to be aggressive but also patient behind him.”
Tune in this Sunday at 8 p.m. ET on FS1 to see Kyle Larson and the rest of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers take to Texas Motor Speedway to compete for the $1 million prize at the All-Star Race.