Last Saturday night, after transferring from the Monster Energy Open, Kyle Larson held off Kevin Harvick to win $1 million in the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
On Wednesday night at Millbridge Speedway near Salisbury, N.C., Larson wheeled an Outlaw Kart to victory in the 51-lap main event and collected a total of $6,401, including lap money.
But for Larson, it’s not about the cash.
“I was born a race car driver, so that’s really all I ever think about, especially this time of year when I have a lot of race to look forward to,” Larson said. “I would like to race a car every day if I could.”
“I’d race for 500 bucks. I felt like I had to race even harder to win that race last night (at Millbridge). It feels just as good. Especially, last night felt really good with all the issues that I had throughout the night with my kart and engine and wing and pipe and all of it. To get the win was really cool.”
The All-Star race win, however, may mean more in the overall scheme of things. It was a welcome boost for a driver who has endured a skein of hard luck in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet this year.
“Winning always helps confidence,” Larson said. “And even with the struggles we’ve had this year, I haven’t really felt like I’ve lost confidence in being able to run good. It’s been bad luck that’s made us have bad finishes, not us running around 25th.
“I feel like we’re always running around the top 10 when we have our issues. I feel like we’ve always been pretty close, so to get that win last week was sweet. I hope it can help the momentum and confidence.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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