Kyle Larson is not a racing god.
Like every other person he competes against, no matter the racing discipline, he’s still very human.
Though he was named to NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers list last week, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion isn’t exceptional at every track he graces his presence with.
But he’s working on it.
Until Sunday (April 16), Martinsville Speedway had arguably been Larson’s Achilles’ heel from the start of his Cup career.
In his first 10 races at the half-mile track, he only finished on the lead lap three times and had four DNFs.
The track made him miserable.
“I’ve left here just mad,” Larson said Sunday after he earned his first-ever win at one of NASCAR’s original tracks. “I hated this place. I’ve wished it would flood (laughing). I’ve wished a lot of bad things on this place.”
Larson’s crew chief, Cliff Daniels, emphasized the point.
“He has had so much doubt in himself [at Martinsville],” Daniels said.
But the Hendrick Motorsports driver has put in the work over recent years, specifically with the help of driver coach Josh Wise.
Larson has worked with Wise since 2017, during the height of his days at Chip Ganassi Racing.
“A lot of it has to do with Josh for sure,” Larson said. “He has done a really good job at pointing things out.
“I think for so long when I came to Martinsville everybody was, ‘Oh, you have to back your entries up, get good exits and stuff like that,’ so you work that into your brain, and you try and drive that way.
“Over time through, data and seeing how the good guys get around here, I quickly realized that it’s the opposite. You make your time on entry, and it’s not about your good exits.
“Since that, I’ve been able to kind of work harder at my driving style a little bit.”
Since 2019, Larson has four top 10s at Martinsville and has finished on the lead lap in all seven of his starts there.
Daniels said the No. 5 team, which now has 15 wins in the last three seasons, “continued to stay true to our process” of how it prepared and analyzed data and Larson has been “very open to…
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