Kyle Larson was looking for redemption. The Hendrick Motorsports driver attempted the ‘double’ earlier this season, but was forced to miss out on the 2024 Coca-Cola 600 because of weather conditions. However, he more than made up for it this time around by securing a victory at the Charlotte Roval, his first win on the track since the Next-Gen car was introduced. The 32-year-old also won the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, making amends for his disappointing doubleheader.

After a dominant victory at the 2024 Bank of America ROVAL 400, Rick Hendrick spoke about the topsy-turvy nature of Kyle Larson’s season and whether he was more motivated to prove himself at Charlotte Motor Speedway after not being able to compete on the track in May.

Did Larson have a point to prove at the Charlotte Roval?

What a way to lock yourself into the Round of 8! Despite starting the race in sixth place, Kyle Larson took advantage of the reconfigured 2.28-mile hybrid course to quickly gain track positions. He climbed up to second place by the end of the first lap by making a bold move on Turn 7 and was just behind pole-sitter Shane van Gisbergen. The California native took the lead at the start of Stage 2 when Tyler Reddick went into the pits and went on to dominate the second half of the race to secure his sixth victory of the season. Larson drove like he had a point to prove in the final Round of 12 race, and led 62 of 109 laps, with the majority of them coming in the closing stages.

In the post-race press conference, FOX Sports journalist Bob Pockrass asked Rick Hendrick and Kyle Larson’s crew chief Cliff Daniels if the No. 5 Chevy driver was more motivated at the Roval. While Daniels replied, “Maybe a little,” Hendrick went on to say, “I’d say the fact that he didn’t get to race here and Indy didn’t turn out too well, that he had extra motivation. But I think, as Cliff has said, I think we said earlier when you’ve been to that final four and you came up short and you got the offseason to think about it, you want to dig hard. I think that’s why our teams come early and run so good early and then we might take a little bit of a dip in the summer because we load so hard early on.”

Rick Hendrick may have a point. Even though Kyle Larson won at Sonoma Raceway just two weeks after attempting the ‘double’, he couldn’t recapture the level of consistency that he showed at the beginning of the season. In the ten races before the Coca-Cola 600, the 32-year-old secured five top-five finishes, a feat he could only achieve thrice in ten races afterward. However, even though Larson temporarily took his foot off the pedal, the No. 5 Chevy driver seems to have rediscovered his form in the playoffs, having secured two victories in the last four postseason fixtures.

There is another redemption that Larson will be aiming for. Having finished as a runner-up last season, the Hendrick Motorsports driver will be looking to improve on that performance this time around and lift the championship at Phoenix Raceway. He is currently first in the drivers’ standing going into the Round of 8 and will be one of the favorites to make it to the Championship 4. Will he be able to maintain a high level of consistency in the upcoming three races? Time will tell, but if there’s one driver who can live up to the expectations placed on his shoulders, it’s Kyle Larson.

Kyle Larson credits the HMS team for Roval victory

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It was just the result Kyle Larson was hoping for. Despite entering the weekend with a 52-point advantage, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was looking to break his two-year winless streak at the Charlotte Roval. The last time he won at the hybrid course was in 2021, the year he also clinched the Cup Series title. However, Larson has struggled on the track in the Next-Gen car since then but was hoping to change that narrative this time around.

Having wrecked in his last two appearances at the 2.28 mile course, Larson went on to say, “I think it’s the first time I’ve been here without crashing. Good weekend. Obviously, we’re here at Hendrick’s home and got so many people here from there. Gonna be fun to celebrate with them. Knowing that I don’t really use the sim much and I was in the sim this week, so huge thank you to the guys there. It really helped me get into a rhythm early on and help us kind of fine-tune our car. Hats off to everybody there.”

Momentum is on Kyle Larson’s side with just four races remaining. He could continue his winning streak in the opening Round of 8 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a track where he triumphed last year. Victory at the 2024 South Point 500 will automatically guarantee him a place at Phoenix Raceway and ease off the pressure in the remaining two races at Homestead-Miami and Martinsville Speedway. Will he be able to continue his red-hot form in the upcoming postseason races? Let us know in the comments!