There might be contradictions about William Byron’s place in the Championship 4. But if there was one driver there was no doubt about, it was his teammate, Kyle Larson. Riding a six-win season, Yung Money seemed destined to contend for his second title at Phoenix. Now, call it fate, or the Playoff puzzle, the winningest driver this year has been left on the outside looking in this weekend.

It is ironic, considering Larson was arguably the best Hendrick driver this season. William Byron won three races en route to his championship chase, whereas Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman fell out in the Round of 8 after winning a single race each in the regular season. But honors must go out to Rick Hendrick’s race team for coming so close to putting all four cars in the final 4. Regardless, such is the nature of this Playoff format—it is ruthless, unpredictable, and sometimes a little unfair. And Kyle Larson knows all about that.

Six wins could not secure a title shot for Kyle Larson

Do the playoffs guarantee incentives for being consistent? Maybe not. After all, a driver like Kyle Larson, who has six wins this season, bowed out of the final elimination round, the same as Elliott and Bowman. But has this 10-race post-season made things more interesting since its inception? A majority would say ‘Yes’ to that question, although that debate has been raging for about a decade in the wider NASCAR community.

We’ve seen plenty of moments that made absolutely zero sense in this playoff format. But it’s also delivered memories we’ll carry with us for a lifetime—the kind that makes every lap worth watching. However, after the Martinsville race manipulation fiasco last weekend, the flaws of the format exposed themselves in bright light. Austin Dillon and Ross Chastain blocked the entire field for Chevy ally Byron in those final 15 laps that mattered, while Bubba Wallace slowed down to let Toyota teammate Christopher Bell through to contend for the transfer spot. The fallout for their actions has been “detrimental,” to say the least. Now, what most don’t notice is a deserving contender languishing on the bylines.

In a recent video interview with Bob Pockrass before his Phoenix advance, Larson lamented, “Sure, I mean I’d like to be racing for a championship. But yeah, It just didn’t work out for us in the round of 8… It’s kind of the format.” But he had no complaints. In 5 simple words, Larson also affirmed, “I just got to do better,” and expressed his desire to win “way more stages, more races” next year. A mentality like that has pushed the #5 driver this far in his auto racing career. And at just 32 years of age, he has tons of time to conquer more ovals and claim more championships.

But can he do it with this post-season championship-deciding system in sanction? He came tantalizingly close last year at Phoenix, but as the record stands, the most dominant driver in the field has been title-less since the Next-Gen car came around in 2022. So, is it the Playoff format or the vehicle?

With so many questions unanswered, another media member probed Larson for any tweaks that he wished NASCAR implemented in the background of all this talk to revamp the current format. And to that, he calmly answered, “I personally don’t have any ideas yet. I haven’t really thought about it a whole lot this week.”

“But yeah, sure, I think there’s probably ways that could keep it compelling, but also maybe a bit fair, at the same point,” asserted Larson, and then elaborated, “There’s no question that the Playoffs are really exciting and the format produces excitement. So, you don’t want to get rid of that. But at the same point, I mean, you’d like to see it a little bit more fair. Maybe this is the fairest way. I don’t know.” 

Kyle Larson will end his 2024 with the most wins and highest laps led. Larson also has a commendable P18 finish to show for at the Indy 500 this year, which puts him on an exclusive list of stock-car champions who attempted the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.’ The guy has nothing to hang his head about, with a satisfying season behind him. Sure, it must sting not being able to contend for the grandest prize of his chosen discipline—a Bill France Cup—this weekend. But had NASCAR penalized both Byron and Bell after the Martinsville race, Larson would be the first person in line to nab that final transfer spot. So many variables follow the Hendrick #5 brigade.

Now, he’s gearing up for the off-season, and it looks like all the guy wants to do is refresh, reset, and reclaim in the 2025 season.

A quiet exit from Playoff controversy

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Larson will roll off the grid in 4th place on Sunday, alongside old rival Ross Chastain. Both drivers will be racing to salvage some last-ditch honor for their respective race teams as the 2024 NASCAR season readies to draw its curtains. Everyone is bound to have some mixed feelings as the field takes to green for the last race of the year to crown the winner. Regardless, it seems Larson has stayed away from the never-ending drama of the Playoffs, as he told Frontstretch a few days ago, “I recently deleted Twitter a few weeks ago… So I’ve been kind of in the dark on a lot of stuff.”

Here’s to hoping the #24 Hendrick teammate can make Rick Hendrick proud on his race team’s 40th anniversary. But to do that, Byron faces stiff competition from a very strong final 4 this year. He should be wary of Joey Logano. Ryan Blaney and Tyler Reddick will not leave even an inch on the racetrack in their respective advances to the championship. However, the question remains: will he receive any help from his HMS stablemates, like Kyle Larson, in the process?