Kyle Larson addresses finish of NASCAR championship race: 'Yeah we stole it'

There are times in sports when the winning team or athlete goes out and steals it. Kyle Larson did that two weeks ago in Phoenix. Larson snatched the title out of Denny Hamlin’s hands in the two-lap overtime, and the rest is now NASCAR history.

Kyle Larson stole the championship and did it without even leading a lap on the day. It was a confusing and stressful finish that left most of the NASCAR world wondering, “what?”

So, what does Larson think about it now? Well, he knows what happened, but that doesn’t mean his team didn’t earn it.

“I mean, yes and no. Sure, yeah we stole it, but our team did a really good job,” Larson said to Lee Spencer of FloRacing. “I think that’s what I’m most proud of. Just how quickly we kind of turned our race around, obviously, due to some good fortune with cautions and the correct pit calls and strategy. Which weren’t clear decisions, either, and everybody kind of executed when they needed to.

“So, yeah, we didn’t dominate the race by any means, not even leading a lap, but I feel like our team did the best job, and we are deserving champions in that respect. And two, when you look at it, we did have a great season with laps led and consistent finishes and top-fives and top-10s. We were in the top two in basically every category. So, it was a great year and I’m proud of that.”

Kyle Larson has been a gracious champion. He hasn’t lashed out at the drama that unfolded at the end of the championship race. He’s simply taken what he earned and embraced it. As he should! Despite the gripes and worries and concerns, Larson is a two-time champion and more than deserving of it. Denny Hamlin even said so himself.

“I think that the fans made it a lot easier,” Hamlin explained on Actions Detrimental this week. “I mean, the competitors made it easier. You know, I got to give so much appreciation to Kyle Larson and how gracious he was during all this. Very humble during all this and certainly during the banquet, giving myself and my team the props that we did deserve in that final race. He did nothing wrong. His team knew that they had to do something to try to win.

“You know, they played the game as it was meant to be played. So, we definitely have a deserving champion in the 5 team, they scored more points than anyone else the entire year. There’s, you know, I don’t think anyone should ever question the deservingness of Kyle Larson’s championship because he definitely did.”