A few years ago, Kyle Larson was given a nickname.
The nickname, which I believe was coined by either my former NBC Sports colleague Nate Ryan or The Athletics‘ Jeff Gluck, is really only traded by those who take up residence on the internet hive mind formerly known as NASCAR Twitter (now called X).
Simply, it refers to the Hendrick Motorsports driver as “#BluntLarson.”
The moniker gets trotted out — even by yours truly — whenever the California native gives a terse, but honest answer to a question about something.
These answers aren’t usually given in a dismissive manner.
They’re just to the point. And blunt.
#BluntLarson made an appearance Monday morning (Sept. 23), less than 48 hours after he beat his competitors into submission in the Saturday’s (Sept. 21) NASCAR Cup Series playoff elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
How could you forget?
He led the most laps, 462, and torched the field with a margin of victory of 7.088 seconds, the most at the short track since Dale Earnhardt Sr. won by 7.63 seconds in 1993.
In a race plagued by the inability to pass and tires that refused to wear like they inexplicably did in the spring, Larson’s performance was really the only notable aspect of this particular race.
Fans expressed their disappointment in Gluck’s weekly “Good Race Poll.”
Only 27.7% of voters in the less than scientific exercise thought it was a good race.
It didn’t take long for #BluntLarson to enter the chat with a dig at NASCAR’s fan base (at least the ones that can’t let go of X).
Writing this now, one of my favorite GIFs — from the Marvel TV show “The Falcon and Winter Soldier” — comes to mind.
If mayhem had broken out late in Saturday’s race and provided a highlight reel of a finish — or multiple attempts at one — I’d be hard pressed to disagree with Larson’s assessment.
Even though I don’t believe a hair-raising moment can cover up for a dud of race, sometimes it does make said race easier to accept.
Besides, what would you rather be talking about for the next week? An exciting finish or a dominating race and our collective disappointment in a lack of tire wear.
But #BluntLarson didn’t stop there.
He was back on Tuesday (Sept. 24) and in uncharacteristic fashion.
What’s a word for being blunt, but in long form? Whatever it is, it’s probably German.
Anyway, Larson isn’t one to go monologuing….
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at …