NASCAR Cup Series
Phoenix Raceway
Team Chevy Driver Quotes
October 17, 2026
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media in a panel with fellow Chase contenders, Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell, in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Phoenix Raceway.
Kye Larson Media Availability Quotes:
You have three JGR drivers and teams on your heels. Which one are you most concerned about?
“I would say all of them equally. As Chase (Briscoe) and (Christopher) Bell has proven and Denny (Hamlin) has proven for decades, they can win anywhere at any point. As they said, you just have to limit your bad days, and for us so far, we haven’t had any. I’m not saying that we won’t, so we’re just trying to do what we can to execute to the best of our abilities every week and just try to maximize our days.”
Kyle and Christopher, you guys have been super competitive with each other for long stretches of your career, from dirt tracks to now. Has that competitive relationship evolved or changed at all throughout the years? Is it safe to call it a ‘friendly rivalry’ that might not have quite the bitter edge to it?
“I think I’ve said it in other press conferences; nobody’s pushed me more than Christopher (Bell) to become a better racer, so I appreciate that. I think in all forms of sports, there’s always athletes that push athletes, and he’s been the guy to push me to be better because he’s beaten me so much throughout my career. I appreciate the competitive rivalry, for sure. Like he said, we’re different people and hangout with different crowds. We’re just different. You’re always going to have that.”
You’ve been on record numerous times that you suck at Phoenix Raceway, but you’ve finished in the top-five the last four races and third in the last three, so what makes you say that? What constitutes ‘good’ for you?
“Well, I think if you would dig through and pull out average speed throughout a race, I think it would show – which I’m pretty blunt I guess with my comments, but why I feel like we suck here. It just hasn’t, historically, been a good track for us from start to finish. We’re able to finish well, but I think that just has a lot to do with team execution. We’ve done that time and time again here, I feel like. In average ranking, we’re probably an eighth to 13th- place car most times we come here. We’ve had a couple decent ones, but never do we come here and we’re the fastest. It’s just been a tough track for us and one that we’ve worked hard to try and find the speed. William (Byron), I feel like, has been the best out of the four Hendrick Motorsports guys here, consistently, but the rest of us are just always searching.”
Obviously we’ve had rain here today, but more importantly, there’s a tremendous amount of cloud cover here today. What are the difficulties with setting up your car for practice in trying to find a feel of the race pace that is going to be presented in a much different way on Sunday?
“I don’t know. I think in practice, you’re always trying to find a balance that feels comfortable, and I think that can translate to cool or warm conditions. And then, yeah, obviously it’s going to be a little different in the race, but I think the times that you’re off in practice, no matter what the conditions are going to be like in the race, you’re probably going to be off in the race. If you’re balanced in certain conditions, you’re probably going to be balanced in the other conditions.”
Do you guys think it’s weird that a year ago, this would have been the start of a round and Kyle Larson’s lead would have been wiped out and you (Denny Hamlin) would be the points leader?
“I just don’t know why we’re still talking about it because it’s not the format, so it just doesn’t matter. This is what it is now.”
About General Motors
General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future.
GM Motorsports, including the Cadillac Formula 1® Team develops and proves advanced technologies in the most demanding environments, accelerating innovation in performance, safety, efficiency, and electrification for its production vehicles. Cadillac Racing is one of the leading manufacturers in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships (WEC). Chevrolet competes in single seaters in the US IndyCar series, and in NASCAR with multiple team partners and drivers. Corvette customer teams compete in GT series across the globe including IMSA and WEC. Learn more at GM.com.
