NASCAR Cup Series
Martinsville Speedway
Team Chevy Driver Quotes
October 31, 2026
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice qualifying session at Martinsville Speedway. The defending champion enters the penultimate race of The Chase with a 73-point lead.
Media Availability Quotes:
Coming into this weekend, what is your mindset, where are your emotions at, understanding how close you are to possibly pulling off a championship-clinching performance?
“Just continuing to do what we have been doing here throughout The Chase. We are executing at a really good level and having a solid day from start to finish. That is the hope. You never know how it is going to go. Obviously, there are some really good drivers here, so I don’t anticipate clinching anything. I just want to have a good day and not give up too much before next week.”
I think it is hard to ignore the fact of where your potency is at. How do you reconcile that, and what do you think about that when you hear that you have a 73-point lead with two races to go?
“It is tough not to look at that and see what could be done this weekend, but I think what our team does really well is staying focused on what you have to do to prepare a good racecar, have good pit practice, and for myself, studying and being ready for the race. So, not being too relaxed, but also trying not to put too much pressure on yourself either. I really think that is what has pushed us through The Chase, through the season, and other seasons in the past. Just try to stay true to who we are and go have a good day like we have been having.”
What are your thoughts on racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway?
“I love Homestead-Miami Speedway. It is a great venue, a great track, a great area, and to have championship weekend back there is really exciting. Really, as long as I remember watching NASCAR, it has always been at Homestead, so glad to be back there. But then, also, just enjoy a fun racetrack, one where you can kind of run all over the racetrack, and for me, get to run against the wall and all that. So, yeah, I’m excited to get down there and excited to celebrate the season.”
A lot of the time during the stage breaks, Cliff (Daniels, crew chief) would detail kind of where your competition is compared to you guys. How much info do you want to know tomorrow?
“I don’t know. I mean, I think it just kind of naturally happens. Obviously, I sort of know the situation that I am in and all that. So, yeah, I can kind of run some numbers in my own head, maybe not to the accuracy that he’ll have on the screen. If things were tighter, I think that’s when it really becomes crucial to know. It’s still going to be crucial, I think, knowing what’s at stake and all that. But I think maybe it will be a little bit simpler than it has been in previous playoff formats when you’re coming down to points and trying to advance.”
I don’t even know if you allow yourself to think like this, but if you won back-to-back championships, you’d be the first person since Jimmie Johnson to do that. It’s just so incredibly difficult to do that. With the format changing, this would really be quite a big accomplishment for you. Do you have any thoughts on that?
“Yeah, I think it would definitely be an amazing accomplishment, for sure. I think with repeat champions, it was obviously really tough with the previous format, so I think you’ll see more of it now as we get back to The Chase. It’s just easier to put together 10 good races than one. But I think if we happen to go back-to-back with it being two different formats, I think that also just shows the resilience of this team. So, yeah, we’ll see. I just want to go race and try and do a good job.”
Last year when you won, it was almost like, I’m not saying you felt apologetic for the way you won, but you had to explain yourself a lot, defend the format, or be part of that conversation. Now, you come back and you have a chance to have one of the most emphatic statements that we’ve seen of this generation. Does that mean anything to you, the way that you could potentially win this?
“Well, yeah, I think it would be much simpler. I remember going to New York for post-championship stuff last year, and with every news outlet, you had to explain how I’m the champion when Denny Hamlin looked like the champion. So, yeah, this year, if we happen to win, it feels much better and just easier to explain. I think we’ll be remembered for good reasons rather than last year, I feel like everybody will remember it, but not for the right reasons because in a lot of people’s eyes, it looked like we got lucky. With this Chase, there hasn’t really been much luck. I mean, sure, Talladega could be viewed as luck, but so could win superspeedway win.
So, yeah, I mean, you think back to a lot of Jimmie Johnson’s good runs, Tony Stewart’s run; those were remembered for the right reasons. I hope that, if we happen to win, this would be in that same sort of category.”
What do you have to be better at this weekend than you were here in the spring?
“Yeah, I don’t completely remember the spring. I don’t remember qualifying as well as we typically do here, so we were kind of just mired back in that position for most of the race. Looking at notes, my balance was pretty loose-in, and then it was hard to manage rear grip off. Those are probably two areas that we’ve tried to attack to be better when we come back. I think just listening to Cliff (Daniels, crew chief) talk, I think we’ve gotten our short track package just better throughout the year, so hopefully that translates to the racetrack here being a different track than those other short tracks.
We’ll see. We have two sets of tires. I think having a longer practice session, it’ll benefit everybody, but hopefully benefit me for being a guy who needs laps to get in the rhythm here. So, yeah, we’ll see, but I don’t know. I expect your normal guys to be really good. The Penske guys will be fast. Denny (Hamlin) will be really fast. William (Byron) and Chase (Elliott) are always really good here. I feel like Bubba (Wallace), as well, is good. I kind of hover around behind that, so yeah, just trying to be a little bit better.”
When Cliff was in here a little bit ago, he was talking about your preparation and dedication this year, specifically, stood out to him. In your eyes, have you done anything different, as far as your routine, your regimen, that maybe has really shown off this year? “Yeah, I mean, not that I purposely didn’t dedicate time to the Cup Series in the past, but this year, I’ve tried to buy in a lot more to the sim. I’ve done that once a week for a while now. We have a new fitness facility at Hendrick Motorsports, so I’m there three or four times a week. And then, because of that, you’re in the shop more, so you get to be around the guys more. I’ve raced less dirt races this year, so I’m just in town more and naturally just able to spend more time around the NASCAR stuff. I don’t know if it’s benefited or not, but I don’t think it’s hurt by any means. I’ve just enjoyed it. I’ve enjoyed having more time. I think cutting a lot of the dirt stuff out has just given me more time to be around my family. Just kind of shifting priorities; being around my family and being around the NASCAR stuff a bit more. I’ve enjoyed it, too.”
If you look at the 51-race drought you had, all of a sudden, it was just like something switched. It was like a light bulb came on. Is there anything you can point to directly that said, hey, that was the past and this particular thing happened and look at me now?
“Well, I mean, I don’t think it’s just one thing. I think there’s a number of things that stack to be ready for that point. I’ve said all along, even during the winless drought that we were on, I was like, our team is there. Our team is really, really good, and when things come together, we’re going to be ready, and I think we’ve proven that. We didn’t know exactly when that time was going to be, but we were going to be ready whenever it came. Thankfully, it came when The Chase started. So, I think just the process of building, and then also, our racecars got a little bit better. I did say kind of all along, as well, that I didn’t feel like we’re that far off on a lot of areas. And again, when it comes together, it’s going to be great and we’re going to be ready. And yeah, that’s just kind of how it’s been. I think it starts with Cliff (Daniels), for sure. He’s the guy that leads us all down the path.”
Looking from afar, Cliff (Daniels) seems like he’s the serious, head down person. And knowing you, you’re a little lighter. How does that relationship kind of vibe so that you have been as successful as you’ve been?
“Yeah, I think we complement each other well. I think Cliff (Daniels) has really progressed throughout his years as a crew chief, even probably before me, where he’s always kind of developing his style of leadership, especially. And then yeah, like I said, us balancing each other. I am a little bit lighter, and I think it allows him to be a little lighter. But then, he also like makes me be a little bit more serious, as well. You need good chemistry and we have that, as well as everybody on our race team. I feel like we just all vibe really well. I think when we made the pit crew swap last year, it brought a whole new level of energy to the whole group. We’ve had a lot of new mechanics and new engineers throughout the last couple years, as well. We’ve all just meshed well.
But again, it starts with Cliff and how he leads everybody. He could have neutered the pit crew, neutered everybody, to be serious and all this. But I think he’s developed and learned to understand that people need to be themselves, and it’s just brought a really good energy and vibe to the No. 5 team.”
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