The Tulsa Shootout—the “Mecca of Micros”—kicked off on December 31st. You could feel the excitement buzzing through the air as Kyle Larson made his return to one of the biggest events in micro racing. After 14 years away, the NASCAR star’s comeback was the story, and honestly, we were all pretty pumped to see how he’d do. After a successful Cup season with 6 race wins but no trophy to take home, Larson finally got his trophy in Tulsa.

This year was even more special as it saw his son, Owen Larson, also compete at the Junior Sprints. Owen ended up falling short in the final race as Kyle Busch’s son, Brexton Busch, took home the Golden Driller trophy. However, Larson made up for it and brought the trophy to the Larson household.

With a talent like Larson behind the wheel, you know the expectations are sky-high. But, spoiler alert: things didn’t exactly go according to plan at first. The competition was fierce, and Larson found himself in a tough spot early on. But, as they say—all’s well that ends well—and it definitely ended on a high note for the California native.

Kyle Larson wins a hard fought race

Once the shootout started on December 31st, Larson made a solid start, finishing 3rd in his Winged Outlaw heat race. The next day, he took on the Non-Wing Outlaw heats, where he started 10th in his first race. Larson gave it his all but could only climb up to 4th. Not the fireworks fans were hoping for, but still a solid effort. Then came the A-Class Winged Heat Race, where Larson was in a dogfight with some heavy hitters, including sprint car veteran Frank Flud. Larson ended up 2nd after being in 7th place at one point, a strong finish but still no win.

But if there’s one thing we know about Larson, it’s that he’s not one to back down. He’s a racer through and through, and you can’t keep him down for long. In a key heat race on January 2nd, Larson faced off with Michael Hubert, who was leading the race. But Larson wasn’t about to let him cruise to an easy win. On the final lap, Larson made a gutsy move up high and snuck past Hubert by just 0.048 seconds. It wasn’t a blowout, but it was a huge confidence booster for Larson, who was starting to feel the rhythm again. And sure enough, he qualified for all four headline divisions: Non-Wing Outlaw, Winged Outlaw, Winged A-Class, and Stock Non-Wing.

But the real moment came in the 30-lap Winged Outlaw race. Kyle Larson grabbed the checkered flag in what was an absolute slugfest. With TJ Smith, Emerson Axsom, and Daison Pursley Smith chasing him down, Larson held them off to secure his first win in a Micro Sprint at the Tulsa Shootout, and his fourth Golden Driller overall.

While Larson was hoisting the Golden Driller, it wasn’t quite the same story for his son, Owen. In the Junior Sprints division, Brexton Busch had a dominant performance, starting from the pole and leading every lap to grab his first Golden Driller in his fourth attempt. Owen Larson, on the other hand, finished 6th in the race, unable to make it to victory lane like his dad. But even though Owen didn’t get the win, he’ll be celebrating his father’s victory. After all, Kyle Larson’s win was a huge milestone—his first at the iconic Tulsa Shootout. And did you know Kyle Larson had some help from the sidelines?

Kyle Larson giving credit where credit is due

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The race wasn’t a walk in the park for Larson. Starting from 12th to making it to the top. To then hold on to the lead, cruising through traffic as fellow drivers chase you down. Larson opened up on how the race unfolded.

He said, “Once I moved up… you hate to get pounded and try to rip fast laps and wreck and make a mistake, cost yourself the lead. So I was just like being timid. Then we caught traffic I thought I could move to the bottom and move past those two guys. Then one lapper just came and shut my lane down. Really got me in trouble… fortunate to hold on to the win there.”

But regardless, he had fun, especially because he had some help in choosing what lines to run on the track. “That was a lot of fun. That was a great surface for wing cars around here. You can pound the bottom hard and rip the top good… Lots of options. When you are leading it’s different. I’m relying on the turn 2 ‘Toddler Rowdies’. Bunch of 8-12 year olds tell me where to run. I’m putting a lot of faith in them. I think that they helped me. They told me when to move up and when to move down,” he added.

At the end of the day, the Tulsa Shootout was a big win for Kyle Larson, and you can bet his family was right there cheering him on every step of the way. His win was a testament to his skill, determination, and experience—and we’re all here for that kind of comeback story. Did you catch Larson’s race? What did you think of his return to dirt racing? Let us know!