Kyle Larson Opens Up on His Chances of Passing Joey Logano and Holding Off Ryan Blaney in NASCAR Atlanta Race

At the Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kyle Larson tried in vain to catch up to Ryan Blaney for the win. Admittedly, this was Larson’s race to lose, as he led most of the laps.

However, fading tires hurt his chances and Blaney pounced on his misfortune. From there, there was no stopping the Team Penske driver as he stormed to victory.

Following the race, Kyle Larson spoke about whether he stood a chance against Blaney. He said, “I definitely had a shot. I got by [Joey] Logano when I got to him, but it was just hard. My tires were pretty much gone at that point, I was sliding around and didn’t get through traffic.”

Of course, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was gutted to lose. However, he is acutely aware that there is still a long season ahead of him.

Besides, he has already notched one win at Las Vegas, but it has only whetted his appetite for visits to Victory Lane. Now, the Asian-American driver is looking forward to what the rest of the season has to offer.

Kyle Larson will be looking forward to the next race

So far, he has been in excellent form, notching up top-10 finishes in every race, except for the Daytona road course. Larson was devastated to see a win slip from his grasp after leading 269 of the 325 laps. However, he was helpless in the face of Blaney’s better-handling car after the final pit stop.

At least, he can take comfort in the fact that he won both opening stages. This was enough to earn him a hefty 55 points, compared to Blaney’s 57. He also led the charge for Hendrick Motorsports, with the three remaining drivers in the top 10.

So far, Hendrick Motorsports has claimed two wins this season. Namely William Byron at Miami and Larson at Las Vegas. In addition to that, the team notched up two runner-up finishes and a third-place result.

READ MORE: “That Was Awesome” – Ryan Blaney Reacts After Stunning Win Over Kyle Larson in NASCAR Cup Race at Atlanta