It is just 19 days into 2025 and one racer is already hogging the spotlight. Kyle Larson started off the year with a bang, bringing home his third Chili Bowl Nationals title. Winning the A-Main preliminary and then maneuvering his way past nerve-racking crashes, Larson reigns in every dirt racing fan’s mind. Despite this thumping success, Larson’s thoughts still linger around his first two wins.

The Hendrick Motorsports star may be a force to reckon with now. But a few years ago, Kyle Larson almost hit rock bottom in his NASCAR career. Doubts and controversy piled up around him. However, he bravely weathered those challenges not only in NASCAR but also in his dirt ambitions.

Kyle Larson reveals his lifeline

Back in 2020, the versatile racer was competing under the Chip Ganassi Racing banner. He projected a bright and happening future ahead; until an April 12 iRacing invitational event. Kyle Larson uttered a racial slur that was audible to the public. Consequently, his team fired him and NASCAR issued a penalty. These earth-shattering events came immediately after Larson had achieved his first-ever Chili Bowl victory in January 2020. That came 13 years after his Chili Bowl debut back in 2008. But instead of letting the crisis run him over, Larson started afresh. He joined Hendrick Motorsports and roared back to a never-before-seen form in 2021.

Besides clinching 10 Cup race wins en route to a 2021 championship, Kyle Larson also won a consecutive Chili Bowl title. He broke down upon fetching that second win. Now after Larson grabbed his third victory in 2025, he could not help but reflect on those hard times. “Winning that first one really kind of changed my career, I feel like…mentally, helped me become stronger. It was such a mountain to finally break through mentally. I feel like mentally, since then, I have a lot less nerves at these races. And it allows me to execute without making as many mistakes. See, the second win here was great because we didn’t have a good car. But I was able to play defense really well, you know, just win.”

Fast forward to the present day, Kyle Larson had a dominant presence. But it was not easy though. Although Larson did participate in the 2024 Chili Bowl Nationals, he missed the 2022 and 2023 events. So the track felt tougher for him this year. “And then tonight, the track was…it was such a challenge to run laps by yourself. When you can conquer 40 laps on a track like that, it feels great too. And we were really bad earlier in the week. So we made huge improvements tonight on the race car.”

Above and beyond the track, a formidable rival also made things difficult for him.

Beating a man with a purpose

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Daison Pursley is a sprint racing star; he raked up 7 wins and 15 top-five finishes in his very first USAC season. But this racer underwent a crippling incident back in 2021. At merely 17 years old, Pursley encountered a midget car crash that gave him partial paralysis in all four limbs. Although his racing ambition looked like a hazy dream, Pursley did not give up. He came back to Tulsa for the 2023 Chili Bowl event, and then again in 2024, when he finished 4th in the main event. This year, he put up a strong charge against none other than Kyle Larson.

Larson encountered a lapped-car wreck with 17 laps left. After overcoming that, he almost lost his No. 1K midget car again to a dangerous wall ride. Towards the end, Pursley made a desperate dive-bomb move to topple Larson but failed. However, the latter confessed how Pursley kept him on the edge throughout. “I saw him coming, but I knew I was going to clear him pretty easily…I didn’t want to see him and get nervous, throttle up too much and just pressure myself into a mistake on the exit and allow him to get a run. I had to stay calm.” He added, “I think if we stayed in traffic, Daison would have had a lot of opportunities to throw stuff at me.”

Kyle Larson had to overcome a driven rival and a difficult track to fetch his third title. It was all worth it, as he was reminded of his past milestones.