Kyle Larson’s crew chief dedicates his masterminded Kansas win to late HMS figure Jon Edwards’ mother

Kyle Larson's crew chief, Cliff Daniels, dedicated the Kansas Speedway win to the late Jon Edwards' mom on Sunday. Larson went all out at the mile-and-a-half track and dominated the race weekend, which coincides with Mother's Day.

For the unversed, Jon Edwards was Hendrick Motorsports' former director of racing communications and Kyle Larson's PR representative. He passed away last month at 52, which Larson honored with a win at Bristol Motor Speedway.

This time, the #5 team is honoring Edwards' mom after securing its third win of the 2025 Cup Series season. NASCAR Insider Kelly Crandall quoted Cliff Daniel and wrote on X (formerly Twitter):

"Cliff Daniels: 'I talked to Jon Edwards' family this morning. This is for Jon's mom and all the moms out there on Mother's Day.'"

Larson had a flawless race at Kansas Speedway, starting with a pole position. He clocked a 29.39-second lap time to top the qualifying session ahead of Chris Buescher, which he thought was ironic considering their historic finish from last year's spring race.

During the 2025 AdventHealth 400, the 32-year-old Californian collected maximum points at 61. He concluded stages one and two in first place before leading 221 of 267 laps for the win. He got an extra point for posting the fastest lap of 30.29 seconds.

Kyle Larson driving the #5 Chevrolet Camaro at Kansas Speedway - Source: Getty

The 2021 NASCAR champion now leads the standings with three wins, eight top-5s, and nine top-10s, beating HMS teammate William Byron for the top seed. He has also led for 817 laps, the most after 12 races.

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"I was still struggling": Kyle Larson reflects on late-race struggle after Kansas win

While Kyle Larson was driving in the final laps of the Kansas race, the #5 Chevrolet Camaro experienced tire troubles. After the race, Larson said he had to manage his pace, considering he felt the car had issues with grip and driveability.

In a post-race interview with Fox on X, the now 32-time Cup race winner said:

"I was trying so hard to pace myself because I believe that was our longest run of the day. I've been struggling a little bit at the end of the run. Chase is really good. So I felt like I just needed to try to be better on my end." [0:16]

"I don't know if it was paying off in the end. I was still struggling. I don't know if the right front was starting to wear a lot or what, but I was starting to lose a lot of grip, and then I was vibrating really bad so I was afraid of the right rear or something would let go."

"But yeah, great car. Great execution today too for our team," he concluded.

The Hendrick Motorsports ace will return to the NASCAR stage next week for the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. However, the Chevy pilot will fly to Indianapolis first for the qualifying session of the Indy 500. He will reattempt The Double this year, where he will compete in the Coca-Cola 600 and the Indy 500 on the Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend.