During the post-race press conference at the Knoxville Nationals on Saturday night, second-place finisher Giovanni Scelzi was asked what else he needed as he was just one spot away from the podium.
In other words, what did newly crowned three-time Nationals champion Kyle Larson have that he was missing? He made a good observation.
“I don’t know what it takes to get to the next level. When I get there, I’ll let you know. The key is to be mentally and physically strong,” said Scelzi, the often eloquent 22-year-old. “Kyle obviously races three to four hundred laps, which may not be as physically demanding, but it’s definitely mentally demanding to drive a stock car for that long.”
He then shared what he thinks sets Larson apart most.
“He is so good in every discipline, he is probably the best rider who has ever lived,” said Scelzi, whose words drew cheers from a pavilion full of listening fans. “I don’t think it’s stupid to say that. We all know it.”
Corey Day, 18, echoed these comments: “Like Gio said, I don’t think there is a better race car driver in the world than Kyle Larson.”
So the question is: is Larson the best racing driver in the world? This is, of course, subjective and depends on nationality. Americans in general will not disagree. Europeans, namely die-hard Formula 1 fans, will probably call this blasphemy and instead declare that three-time reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen – winner of 51 of the last 80 F1 races since 2021 – is irreplaceable from his throne.
Verstappen has won the last two Best Driver ESPY Awards, ESPN’s honor for the best racing driver in the world. Larson won for his outstanding 2021 season, which earned him a Cup title and crown jewels in NASCAR, Dirt Sprint Cars, Dirt Late Models and Dirt Midgets.
If Larson and Verstappen were to duel at this year’s Olympic Games in Paris, we would have our answer. Or maybe not?
“Not really. I know I’m better than him as an all-round driver,” Larson said bluntly when FloRacing asked him if he needed to race against Verstappen and beat him to feel like the best driver in the world.
Larson didn’t stop there.
“There’s no way Verstappen can get in a sprint car and win the Knoxville Nationals. There’s no way he can win the Chili Bowl. There’s no way he can win a Cup race at Bristol,” Larson continued. “There’s probably no way I can win a Formula One race at Monaco, but I think I’d have a better chance against him (if I do what he does than if he does what I do), just because of the car aspect.”
“That gives me the security and confidence that I know I’m better than him. Maybe not in an open-wheel IndyCar or Formula 1 car, but that’s one discipline. I think I’d beat him in everything else. You can quote that.”
Blunt Larson, a nickname given to him by NASCAR reporter Jeff Gluck years ago, does indeed shine. However, Blunt Larson should not be confused with Egotistical Larson. He has a strong case to make, especially after earning his third Knoxville Nationals victory in four years — his second in a row in dominant fashion — on Saturday.
This is the Sprint Car premier class to which he now belongs:
- One of seven to win three or more Nationals: Steve Kinser (12 titles), Donny Schatz (11), Doug Wolfgang (five), Danny Lasoski (four), Kenny Weld (four) and Mark Kinser (three)
- One of five to win three Nationals and a Kings Royal, alongside Mark Kinser, Steve Kinser, Donny Schatz and Doug Wolfgang
- One of four players to win three titles in four years, alongside Steve Kinser, Schatz and Lasoski
Outside of Sprint Cars, he currently leads the NASCAR Cup standings. He led multiple laps in his first Indianapolis 500 in May, joining Mario Andretti and AJ Foyt as a select few drivers to lead multiple laps in the Indy 500 and Daytona 500 in the same season.
Three weeks ago, he returned to the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway to win NASCAR’s Brickyard 400, making him the sixth driver in NASCAR history to win the Brickyard, the Coca-Cola 600, the Southern 500 and the Bristol Motor Speedway.
This list includes Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski.
Although he doesn’t plan on racing Dirt Late Models anytime soon, he won one of the discipline’s most highly anticipated events: the Wild West Shootout finals on Jan. 14 at Vado (NM) Speedway Park.
Formula One fans might say that success is achieved on ovals, not road courses, and therefore is not as notable. In June, at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, Larson won his seventh NASCAR road course victory in 24 starts — 30 percent — over the past four years. He also has a victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
While that’s not Verstappen’s level (a 63 percent win rate), it could be just enough for Alexander Rossi to give his Arrow McLaren teammate a head start at the 2024 Indy 500.
“Dude, I think (Larson) is already at the top, so I don’t know,” Rossi said in response to a question from the Associated Press before the Indy 500 in May. “Put him at the top? He’s the man.”
Rossi, who raced against Verstappen during a brief F1 stint in 2015, added: “I would say they are on the same level.”
“That’s, like, yeah,” Rossi said, his words again coming just days before the Indy 500, “that’s a pretty big deal.”
Car racing at the Olympic Games?
It is a pity that motorsport is not an Olympic discipline, because Larson against Verstappen would have been the hottest duel in Paris.
ESPN’s Ryan McGee wrote at length a few weeks ago about what a missed opportunity this is, but also that Ray Evernham has the blueprint for “a special car (for the Olympics) that no one will know about” – “a hybrid of several different types of cars” that “could run in a very small stadium if you wanted to.”
As McGee wrote, the financial demands would probably be too great.
“It just costs so much money,” Evernham told McGee. “The Olympic nations barely have enough money to send their athletes to compete. With every race car deal, people always ask me, ‘Ray, can you do this?’ Look, I feel like I can do anything, or at least I think I can. I just need someone to tell me how much time and money I have to do it.”
After auto racing failed to meet the eligibility requirements for the 2028 Olympic program in Los Angeles, the International Automobile Federation – the governing body of Formula 1 – now wants to submit a new application for the inclusion of go-karting in the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane, according to Inside The Game.
While go-karting is not as exciting as full-size racing cars, it would be more cost-effective and therefore allow more countries to participate. Like ESPN’s McGee, Jeff Perez of moto1.com also argued for motorsport to be included as an Olympic discipline in Brisbane in 2032.
Larson would then be 40th. Verstappen would be 34th.
In a perfect world, racing would probably never have been better positioned for inclusion in the Olympic Games. Formula 1’s global reach is greater than ever, thanks in large part to the Netflix documentary series Drive to Survive.
The globalization of dirt track racing, with countless live streams on FloRacing and other streaming services, is adding to the entertainment. High Limit Racing is heading to Australia on December 28-30 to award the largest dirt track prize money ever in the land down under. Last week’s Knoxville Nationals drew record attendance every night and Saturday’s finale was sold out all around – grandstands and pits.
The Olympic Games would be just the thing for Larson. His mission is to connect as many areas and disciplines of racing as possible. And he wants to show that racing drivers are actually athletes.
During Larson’s 21st run leading up to the Aug. 3 victory at Federated Auto Parts at I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Missouri, his maximum heart rate recorded on his Fitbit watch reached 198. Olympic runners operate in the same range.
“We’re athletes, there’s no denying that,” Larson said. “There’s no denying that.”
Then Larson’s thoughts turned to auto racing at the Olympic Games.
“But I have to say, and I don’t follow the Olympics that much… I just don’t foresee it, you know, that racing is part of the Olympics because it’s 100 percent pure athletes,” Larson continued. “100 percent pure athleticism is why you win, whereas with racing there’s always the machine aspect. And the car isn’t quite 100 percent.
“Even if you had two cars here and said they were identical, they wouldn’t be identical. That’s why I don’t think racing will be in the Olympics. But I also want it to be in the Olympics because I would do it.”
If auto racing doesn’t work out at the Olympics, there could always be the winter Race of Champions, an international multi-discipline racing event in which invited drivers from around the world compete in a knockout competition.
“I would love to take the opportunity to do it, and maybe I would have a different opinion if I had the chance,” Larson said. “At the moment I don’t know. I just don’t think it could be an Olympic event.”
“But I would love the chance to win an Olympic gold medal, or, heck, any other medal, racing against Max Verstappen or guys from other countries and so on,” Larson added. “Yeah, that would be pretty awesome.”
The world knows the dominance of the USA basketball team led by LeBron James. It knows all too well the greatness of gymnast Simone Biles and swimmer Katie Ledecky.
Larson and Verstappen deserve an equal chance to go head to head, probably a chance to fight for gold. International Olympic Committee, let it be that way. And let the best driver win.
