Kyle Larson was taken aback that he was able to finish third in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix. Given how they performed throughout the 312-lap race, the driver of No. 5 wasn’t expecting the podium finish.
Meanwhile, Larson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammates faced some of the same struggles. William Byron salvaged a seventh-place finish, while Chase Elliott posted a 23rd-place run, and fill-in driver Anthony Alfredo posted a DNF of 33rd.
Kyle Larson on HMS’ Phoenix performance: ‘It’s concerning’
During a post-race interview with Frontstretch, Larson was asked if he was concerned by his or his teammates’ performances on Sunday.
The two-time and defending Cup Series champion conceded he had concerns, but added that they have always struggled at Phoenix.
It’s concerning, but we’re always really bad here at Phoenix. At least me. William’s had his moments of being pretty strong. I feel like the rest of us three have always been really bad. We just were worse today,” Larson said.
Between the new Chevrolet body and the increase in horsepower at Phoenix, Larson didn’t know for certain if either of those two things led to their tough days in the desert.
Ultimately, the 33-year-old drew it up to their overall lack of performance at Phoenix as the reason. Despite that, Larson said because they’ve been in similar situations at the 1.0-mile track, they knew how to salvage the race.
“Because we are so bad here, I feel like we know how to fight through it and get a third-place finish like we typically do here. Performance wise, that’s not where we should be running. So with that, yeah, I’m proud of the team. For Phoenix, we’ve got to get way, way better,” Larson said.
Larson posted a third-place finish, the same result that helped him capture last year’s Cup Series title in the championship race at Phoenix.
Meanwhile, Byron posted a seventh-place result, but didn’t have the pace to contend for the win. Elliott was mired back in traffic throughout the race and got collected in two crashes on his way to a 23rd-place effort.
Alfredo filled in for Alex Bowman, who was sidelined ahead of Sunday’s race with vertigo. The fill-in driver posted a 33rd-place DNF after being collected in a crash with Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric.
Kyle Larson surprised by third-place Phoenix run
The driver of the No. 5 wasn’t expecting to run third on Sunday at Phoenix. After struggling with his race car throughout the weekend, Larson was pleasantly surprised by the result.
“A good fight by our team. We kinda struggled with our car all weekend, was able to qualify well, and then just kinda fight through today and salvage a third. Was not expecting that with how bad we were, but again, proud of the team,” Larson said.
Larson is amid his sixth season with Hendrick Motorsports and entered 2026 as the defending champion. Since joining HMS, the California native has won two titles and 26 Cup races.
After four races, Larson sits 10th in the points standings. The Cup circuit heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway next Sunday, where Larson has been the victor three times.