Kyle Larson concedes defeat to Shane van Gisbergen’s road course domination ahead of Charlotte race

Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson recently conceded to Shane van Gisbergen’s road course prowess before the NASCAR Cup Series race at Charlotte Roval. He said that currently, he is nowhere near him and added that his aggressive driving style might be the reason.

Kyle Larson has openly admitted that Shane van Gisbergen’s supremacy on road courses is well in evidence as they approach the Charlotte Roval race upcoming. Larson admitted that van Gisbergen’s current run of four consecutive Cup Series wins on road courses is remarkable and lays the bar pretty high for other competitors.

Larson added that although he would love to win but van Gisbergen’s ability on braking points, in the corners, and accelerating on road courses currently puts him in a league of his own, and it’s a struggle for other drivers to keep up with him speed-wise.

Shane van Gisbergen has built an unprecedented track record at NASCAR's road courses since making his debut. Up to 2025, he has collected 9 combined road course wins across NASCAR's premier three national series, tying him with legends Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch for second all-time wins on these circuits. Notably, van Gisbergen did so in just 21 starts on road courses at NASCAR, giving him a stunning 42.9% winning percentage. Kyle Larson said during a media availability session:

“I don't know… I feel like this year, nowhere near him. I think that's a lot due to the tire change and just my driving style, maybe I'm guessing, but just being overly aggressive in a way of how you load the tire and slip and stuff. I've just been trying to get better this year on the road course stuff. We've had great results, I feel like my whole career on road courses, so I definitely don't feel bad."

"But it's just a combination of things, I think. Same as ovals. Your car has to be good. You have to execute well. I don't know that there's one particular thing that I'm better at than anybody else, but I think our team just does a good job and hopefully it's the same case this week,” he added.

Kyle Larson has enjoyed a robust 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season with three wins, with an impressive victory at Bristol being one of them. Larson has managed 11 top-five and 18 top-10 finishes from 31 races and has led for 944 laps total. The HMS frontrunner leads the standings with 3,124 points and is the championship favorite as the playoffs run progressively deeper.

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Kyle Larson reveals why short track racing remains a struggle for him

Kyle Larson opened up about his ongoing struggles with short track racing during a recent episode of the Stacking Pennies podcast, candidly admitting that he often ends up overdriving and wearing out his tires prematurely.

Despite a decent track record on short tracks, including recent top-10 and top-5 finishes at Martinsville and a 2023 win at Darlington, Larson acknowledged that this year has been challenging for him on these circuits. His performances in the 2025 playoffs on short tracks, including Martinsville and Bristol, were disappointing, with finishes well outside the top 10.

"Where I struggle on the short tracks is, I for one, I'm, even though I don't feel like it, I'm probably overdriving.....I feel like the short guys who grew up late model racing and like you guys make up all your time like deselling at a really quick rate without being over the limit of the tire. And that's where I'm like I really struggle with the short track," Larson said (55:35 onwards via NASCAR on YouTube).

"Like, where's the center of the corner?....Like, that's the feel I don't really have on short tracks," he added.

Despite his challenges, Kyle Larson remains competitive, currently sitting third in the playoff standings with a 54-point cushion as he approaches Charlotte.