FOURTH IN PHOENIX: Kyle Larson was fastest overall in practice and won his 15th career pole position, earning him the top spot for the start of Sunday’s race at Phoenix Raceway. During the race, the 30-year-old driver won the second stage and led a race-high 201 laps. At the checkered flag, Larson finished in the fourth position at the 1-mile desert oval.
LEADING LAPS: Claiming the front position for 270 laps thus far, Larson has led the most laps of any driver in the Cup Series in 2023. This mark puts the Elk Grove, California, native tied for fourth with Jimmie Johnson's 2005 tally (and behind Jeff Gordon in 1995 and 2001 and Terry Labonte in 1996) for the most laps led by a Hendrick Motorsports driver through four races.
THE NO. 5 IS HEATING UP: Larson is one of only five drivers – along with teammates Alex Bowman and William Byron – to earn multiple top-five finishes to start the season. He earned those finishes over the past two weekends at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (second) and Phoenix (fourth). Those two races also rank in the top 10 among his best races based on average position – 1.4 at Phoenix (ranks tied for third) and 2.2 at Las Vegas (ranks 10th). The 2021 Cup Series champion is second in most laps run in the top five (638) and fourth in most laps run in the top 10 (707).
300TH NASCAR START: This Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Larson will hit a career milestone. The green flag at the 1.54-mile track will symbolize Larson’s 300th start in the Cup Series. He will be the 99th driver to hit this mark. After making his Cup Series debut at Charlotte Motor Speedway for HScott Motorsports, Larson drove for Chip Ganassi Racing (from 2014 to 2020) and has been with Hendrick Motorsports since 2021. He will look to be the eighth driver and the first since Brad Keselowski (at Talladega in October 2017) to be victorious in his 300th Cup Series start. To date with 299 starts, Larson has earned 19 wins, 91 top fives, 148 top 10s, 43 stage wins and one championship.
RACING IN THE ATL: Larson’s 419 laps led at the Hampton, Georgia, venue is the most by a driver without a win and are his sixth-most at a track on the current series schedule. The two-time runner-up finisher at Atlanta has four top-10 results in 10 starts at the track.
PIT POWER: The No. 5 pit crew has the eighth-best average four-tire stop time through four races at 11.493 seconds. The team’s five-man pit crew consists of Blaine Anderson (front-tire changer), R.J. Barnette (tire carrier), Brandon Harder (fueler), Brandon Johnson (jackman) and Calvin Teague (rear-tire changer).
HENDRICKCARS.COM IS HOME: The Atlanta race marks the first 2023 home race for the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team. Respectively, the No. 5 driver and crew can be found in their white firesuits this weekend. In addition, Hendrick Automotive Group is celebrating with a new exclusive hat program for fans. For every home race this season (15 total), there will be a unique hat that is released the week of the race and only available for sale at the trackside merchandise haulers, or available to win on HendrickCars.com. Less than 100 of each limited-edition hat will be made available to the public. See this week’s hat, which will be revealed at noon ET on Thursday, here.
ATLANTA AUTOMOTIVE NEEDS & BEYOND: The extended Atlanta market is home to nine Hendrick Automotive Group dealerships. Not located in Georgia? You can pick from any one of Hendrick Automotive Group’s 95 dealerships nationwide. Customers can also shop from the convenience of their home by selecting the category, make, model and vehicle packages that are important to them from the nearly 30,000 new, high-quality pre-owned and certified cars, trucks and SUVs available at HendrickCars.com.
WE’RE HIRING: Join 10,000+ others nationwide in working at Hendrick Automotive Group. Hendrick is hiring technicians and other positions at its dealerships throughout the country. Positions are open for all skill levels and offer tuition and training reimbursement. Individuals who are interested can apply at HendrickCars.com.
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on the season so far: "We had a shot to win in Daytona and I crashed. In Fontana, we had the mechanical issue early in the race, but fixed it and the last two runs of the race we were by far the fastest car. In Vegas, we were the second-best car to William (Byron) and finished second. In Phoenix, again, we had a great car there and had a shot to win late. No win in the column, but I’m super pleased with our performance and look forward to every upcoming race. I feel like no matter where we go right now, we will have a shot at a good finish and hopefully some wins along the way."
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