Kyle Larson, who secured the final spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4, reflected on outdueling Christopher Bell following a clean race at Martinsville Speedway. Larson beat the Joe Gibbs Racing driver by seven points after earning 49 points (including 17 from stages) on Sunday.
Larson finished 5th in the Round of 8 finale at the 0.526-mile short track in Virginia. He posted a third-place finish in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2, which helped build the cushion he needed to advance.
Bell had a bit of an edge over the Hendrick Motorsports driver in car performance but suffered a similar fate as in previous playoffs. He finished seventh and scored 41 points, including 11 from the stages during the race.
“I recognized that we were better than Christopher in car performance, and we were in front of him all night. Our team did a great job. We didn’t have any hiccups, really. I definitely could have had some better restarts, but like I said, when I outscored Christopher, I was just playing it a little bit easy and wanting to just tuck in line and go from there,” said Larson.
Larson also held the stronger starting position, qualifying third while Bell started 12th. The better starting slot helped Larson maintain track position and stay ahead throughout the race.
“I feel content with the results. The four are legitimate contenders,” he added.
Meanwhile, William Byron won his third race of the season at Martinsville after pacing the field through both stages. The No. 24 Chevy driver led all 130 laps in Stage 2 and crossed the checkered flag 0.717 seconds ahead of Ryan Blaney.
“Our short track package has gotten way better,” Kyle Larson said when discussing his prospects heading into Phoenix.
Kyle Larson will join his teammate William Byron and Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe in the championship race at Phoenix Raceway. The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion will move on despite a 23-race winless streak. His third and last win of the season so far came at Kansas in May.
Larson boasts the second-best average finish among the Championship 4 contenders at Phoenix, after Byron. He finished third at the Arizona track earlier this season. However, the 33-year-old has not won at Phoenix in the last seven races, unlike Chase Briscoe and Byron, who respectively won the spring races at the Arizona oval in 2022 and 2023.
“I felt like we were decent there earlier this year, and I think our short track package has gotten way better,” Larson noted.
The NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race will start at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 2.
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