What Makes Kyle Larson the Biggest Regret of Tony Stewart’s NASCAR Career

In 2021, Kyle Larson was the breakout star and capped off a dream season with his maiden Cup Series championship. His is truly a comeback story, from the lows of getting dropped midway through 2020, to the highs of the 2021 title. Along the way, he bagged 10 victories in the season for Hendrick Motorsports.

However, it could have been a completely different story once upon a time. There were talks that Tony Stewart and Stewart-Haas Racing were interested in acquiring his services. Tony’s interest was piqued due to Larson’s prowess on the dirt arena, something that Stewart is also familiar with.

Following his Chip Ganassi Racing exit and subsequent NASCAR suspension, Larson elected to hone his craft. To do that, he turned to the dirt tracks and built a name for himself until the sport gave him a second chance. When NASCAR remained on tenterhooks to re-hire him, Tony Stewart was leaning towards redemption.

Tony Stewart rued not taking a chance on Kyle Larson

Talking about the missed opportunity with Kyle, who Tony considers to be a ‘unicorn’, he said, “I said (damn it) the day that I found out I couldn’t get him. I said it that day, probably in words that I can’t use right now, but I said that a lot that day and have said it every day since then. That will be one of the biggest regrets of my professional career is not getting that kid and having an opportunity to race him in our cars. He’s a once-in-a-lifetime driver.”

In all honesty, the SHR team needed him, especially with Clint Bowyer hanging up his boots. Furthermore, Aric Almirola had not committed to the #10 car, which came much later, but that’s another story. Owing to this, Stewart was more than willing to take him in. Unfortunately, there was a huge stumbling block called Ford, who shot the idea down.

READ MORE: “Tried For the Last 4 Years”- Tony Stewart Reveals Why He Could Not Bring Kyle Larson to Stewart-Haas Racing