CONCORD, N.C. - There's nothing that replaces experience.
For Kyle Larson, crew chief Cliff Daniels and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, it might just be the differentiator they need to capture a second NASCAR Cup Series title.
With a bit of momentum after grabbing fifth and outpointing Christopher Bell in the Round of 8 elimination race at Martinsville Speedway, Larson joins three others - including teammate William Byron - in pursuit of NASCAR immortality this weekend at Phoenix Raceway.
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Intangibles matter in moments like these, especially when the difference between winning and losing are often calculated by thousandths of a second. And when peering below the surface of a stout Championship 4, it's quickly apparent there's one thing Larson has the others don't.
Let's take a look:
Kyle Larson
- Phoenix starts: 22
- Phoenix wins: 1
- Phoenix top fives: 10
- Phoenix top 10s: 14
- Career laps led at Phoenix: 393
- Average finish at Phoenix: 10.68
The case: Of the Championship 4, only Larson has hoisted a NASCAR Cup Series championship trophy.
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He did it at Phoenix too, when Daniels and the No. 5 crew orchestrated an 11.8-second pit stop to grab a late lead during the final caution period in 2021. Never looking back when the green flag waved with 24 laps to go, Larson would cross start-finish for the biggest win of his Cup Series career.
That moment and this team, have proven it can win a race under the ultimate pressure.
"Having a championship under your belt and doing it at Phoenix the way the (No.) 5 car has done it in the past," said Jeff Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman and four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, during the post-race press conference at Martinsville. "All that experience and knowledge is good to have in your back pocket."
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While Larson's only victory at Phoenix Raceway was in 2021, he's consistently run up front in his 22 starts on the one-mile oval. Larson's scored 10 top-five and 14 top-10 finishes at the track, with an average finish of 10.68 in those starts.
Those numbers become even more impressive when you consider his results at Hendrick Motorsports since the beginning of 2021. If you exclude the March 2022 spring race where the team experienced car trouble and wound up 34th, the Elk Grove, California, driver has an average finish of fifth over nine Phoenix Raceway starts with the team.
BUY: Kyle Larson Hendrick Motorsports gear
If history is any indicator, Larson, Daniels and the No. 5 crew will be in position to score that second NASCAR Cup Series title this weekend.
You can watch Kyle Larson and his pursuit of that title on Sunday at 3 p.m. on NBC.