What happens when the most ambitious driver in NASCAR, on the verge of creating history, sees it fade away in the closing laps? Kyle Larson was striving for glory at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday. The Weather Guard Truck Race was the start of his second attempt at a weekend sweep after narrowly missing out in Homestead after a P4 in just the Xfinity Series. Only Kyle Busch has ever completed the weekend sweep of Truck Xfinity and Cup, and in a quest to step into Kyle Busch’s sweeping shoes, Larson unfortunately fell short once again.

On fresher tires, Larson drove the #07 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet to a late run through the field, but Chandler Smith was the driver preventing him from reaching his full potential. Smith did not blink. He didn’t let Larson have the storybook finish, stayed in line, and ran flawless laps. “We had a little bit of an advantage to get toward the front. But Chandler just didn’t mess up. I kept hoping he would, but he just ran a perfect race.” Larson told NASCAR.com post-race. Kyle Larson was disheartened with the loss, but if he had to lose to anyone, it would be to Smith’s driving last night. After all, the Front Row Motorsports driver has been through some tough times over the off-season, and even Denny Hamlin lauded Smith for his performance.

Denny Hamlin is noticing Smith’s resurgence

Chandler Smith saw it as a statement rather than merely a Truck Series victory. A blow to Kyle Larson’s hopes of winning three races in one weekend. Kyle Busch remains the only driver to do it so far, and twice, nonetheless, at Bristol in 2010 and 2017. When Larson attempted it at Homestead, he won the Truck and Cup Series races but lost the Xfinity race after a shove from Sam Mayer on a late restart. This was a case of bad luck, but his Truck Series loss at Bristol was a case of another driver acing the track.

Denny Hamlin, who finished runner-up in the Bristol Cup Series race, was quick to laud Chandler Smith on his Actions Detrimental podcast, saying, “He held off [Kyle Larson]… Just a few laps ago, they had a late caution… A fantastic run by them. Congratulations to Chandler.” For Kyle Larson, the sting was real. He failed at his sweep attempt on the first race of the week and went on to win Xfinity and Cup races as well!

However, Chandler Smith was a beast of a driver when the Truck Series race’s green flag was raised. Smith won the opening stage and led 127 of the 250 laps in the 2025 Weather Guard Truck Race at Bristol Motor Speedway while piloting the No. 38 Ford F-150 for Front Row Motorsports. He won his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race of the season and his sixth career after holding off a charging Kyle Larson in the final laps after a late caution gave Smith the advantage.

“He’s been quietly really good this year… I see his stats online in the Twitter atmosphere, it always shows that his average running position. He’s always way up there in the Truck Series. Not as high as Corey Heim, but he’s performing well,” Hamlin added. The way Smith performed was what made the victory stand out. He defeated Larson just on speed and poise, not on strategy or good fortune. Against one of the world’s top drivers, that was a courageous display.

Denny Hamlin’s evaluation keeps track. Smith had a top-5 average running position (ARP) of 6.3 going into Bristol, which was among the best in the field based on NASCAR loop data. The only player with a higher ARP stat was the championship leader, Corey Heim of TRICON Garage. In addition to this, Smith has also finished in the top-10 in each race of the Truck season so far, further highlighting the level of consistency he is delivering.

Then came the critical question stated by Jared Allen on the podcast: “What does a Truck Series win do for a guy like Chandler Smith?” Hamlin replied, “It builds confidence in yourself, builds confidence in those watching your talents. Certainly, when you can go against a Cup guy head-to-head and get the better end of it—it’s gonna look good on people’s feelings about you and your talent. I think Chandler is a very good driver.” Kyle Larson, the 2021 Cup Series Champion and a consistent favorite in whichever vehicle he gets into, was that “Cup guy.” Going wheel-to-wheel and defeating Larson at a track where the latter has dominated in the past is no mean feat. Smith had to put in the hard yards, and he has been through a lot.

Smith’s career path hasn’t exactly been easy. His Truck Series career with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2022 and 2023 was stellar; he won 5 races and had 15 top-5s and 25 top-10s for his two full-time seasons before earning an Xfinity promotion to Joe Gibbs Racing in 2023. However, he was abruptly removed from the ride amid a team-wide restructuring in late 2024, following an impressive stint at Joe Gibbs Racing with three wins, 25 top-5, and 35 top-10 finishes across 2023 and 2024. The move came as a shock, but the reality is that the Xfinity Series isn’t for those with light pockets.

Chandler Smith admitted during the offseason that he might have to give up racing entirely after not getting funding for an Xfinity seat. In October 2024, Smith said, “I don’t have a ride next year. I could be working for my dad’s construction business and could be hanging it up at the end of this year.” This damning revelation shocked the grid. It shed light on what it takes to be in NASCAR’s second tier, and even Denny Hamlin touched on this while talking about Smith’s career.

Despite Smith succeeding in the Truck Series so far with Front Row Motorsports, Denny Hamlin wants to see him back in the Xfinity Series but acknowledged the fundamental issue with the series. Hamlin added, “He can have fun and build up his resume and hopefully get that call in Xfinity one day. The problem with Xfinity is that it’s 90% paid drivers. It’s gonna be really tough to break through. Especially the top-notch rides—it’s gonna be really hard with the model of the Xfinity Series.” 

Hamlin’s annoyance isn’t hypothetical. Almost a dozen rides in the 2025 full-time Xfinity field are not only based on talent but rather on sponsors’ leverage or drivers’ personal funds. Smith was dismissed even though he outperformed several other drivers during the previous season, including a run of five top-five finishes in six races. In summary, the results were inferior, and money talks.

Even 2024 Cup Series Champion Joey Logano spoke about this in March 2024, saying, “It’s crazy that, and I’ll be real with you here, I get paid to drive a [Cup Series] car. That’s great. I have to pay to drive an Xfinity car… I have to show up with money on the doorstep to drive one.” If a 3-time Cup Champion has to pay for a ride, something must be wrong. The Xfinity Series was meant to be the stepping stone for the Cup Series but has turned into a sponsorship dogfight as teams try to maximize their drivers by their brand deals instead of on-track performance.

Therefore, Smith’s victory over Larson in a late-race duel in Bristol under the lights wasn’t merely a victory. It served as a reminder that even while the system makes it more difficult than ever to get noticed, genuine talent may still stand out from the crowd. The message for Denny Hamlin is unambiguous. Chandler Smith merits another opportunity, preferably in a top-tier Xfinity vehicle that is in line with his skill level. Do you think Smith will return to the Xfinity Series in 2026? Let us know in the comments!