Kyle Larson has accumulated six wins in the NASCAR Cup Series this year, while his next nearest rival has just three.
That’s not an indication of a driver that is struggling behind the wheel – nor is his tally of four pole positions (the most of anyone in the field).
He holds a 20-point advantage over second-placed Christopher Bell, the same margin between last-placed playoff driver Joey Logano and Bell.
So with a comfortable margin out front, what could scare the American driver heading into the final four rounds of the NASCAR season?
Kyle Larson feels on the ‘edge’ of crashing in 2024
Speaking to GoPRNLive on YouTube, Larson detailed his struggles with the new generation of NASCAR over the last few years.
He won the championship in the last season before a switch to the next-gen car in 2021, and it has taken him time to get back up to speed since.
It appears that although he may be up to speed, he still isn’t comfortable behind the wheel and feels like he could crash at any point.
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“I feel like since we came to the next-gen stuff, I just haven’t felt comfortable,” he said. “I feel like I’m on the edge of crashing all the time.
“I eventually do crash. This weekend, I still felt at times you could crash, but I felt way more – the window of opportunity was way larger.”
How Larson needs to manage the final races of the 2024 season
Larson will be aware more than anyone that he doesn’t need to risk anything over the next three races before the championship finale.
A retirement would wipe his advantage out and leave him at major risk of elimination from the playoffs, which is wild to think about considering his performance.
It’s why his comments are most worrying for himself and his fans, with the unpredictability of the newer cars throwing up a challenge for him to contend with other than his rivals.
READ MORE: NASCAR ‘clarifies’ DVP mid-playoffs after biggest wreck ever at Talladega
It relies on him being comfortable from lap one of the weekend to enjoy success, and if he doesn’t – it sounds like finishing the race is a win.
Any sort of accident could contribute to one of the craziest endings to a NASCAR Cup Series championship in history – with the likes of Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick, and William Byron all waiting to snap up any potential opportunity.