Kyle Larson reveals feelings on being given 'greatest driver in the world' title

Professional athletes are assigned titles and accolades by the public, many times, without any say in the matter themselves. Kyle Larson has been given the title of “greatest driver in the world” over the years for what he can do in a sprint car, NASCAR, and lately, IndyCar.

Kyle Larson has commented on this over the years. It seems his biggest competition in motorsports for that title is four-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen.

Last year, Larson said that he believes he is the most versatile driver in the world. That is different than being the “greatest driver.” Today, Larson addressed that title and how it has been bestowed upon him by many motorsports fans.

“Well, I, although the public thinks that I think that, I don’t necessarily think that I’m the greatest in the world,” Larson explained on Prime Video. “But, no, I’ve heard the accolades and the comments and all that for a long, long time, and being compared to Jeff [Gordon] or Tony [Stewart] or even sometimes Mario [Andretti] and AJ Foyt, guys like that, and it makes me feel really good. But I’m still, I’m only 32 and I’ve got a lot of racing left to do, and I hope I can accomplish a lot more to really feel like I’m deserving of that credit, but I do appreciate it and it just makes me kind of have more drive to try and live up to that hype, I guess.”

Kyle Larson is the most talented driver in NASCAR. He wins a lot of races, and many times when he wins, he does it in dominant fashion. Keeping calm and cool each week behind the wheel is how he has reached so much success.

Kyle Larson still has more racing ahead

A second Cup Series championship has eluded Larson in recent years. The last two years, he has attempted the Double. That may have done more harm than good to his reputation as the greatest in the world. Then again, he has been impressive in an IndyCar as well.

As Larson said himself, he is only 32. He has a ton of racing ahead of him. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has not shied away from stating that he may end up leaving NASCAR earlier than most to pursue other aspects of racing while he is still in his prime. What is scary, for a driver, he is just now entering his prime at his age. And that prime could last for many years.

Drivers like Denny Hamlin are 44 years old and still winning races. You have examples of drivers like Harry Gant and Mark Martin who find some of their greatest successes at the age of 50+. If Larson has another 12 to 18 years of elite-level driving, there is no limit to what he can do.

When you think of guys like Mario Andretti and AJ Foyt, their careers wouldn’t be complete without the part-time, one-off starts in other series that they have made. I think that Kyle Larson still wants to try out V8 Supercars.

He likely wants to give races like the Rolex 24 a chance in the top category, maybe even Le Mans. It would be a shame if he never gets at least a practice session in an F1 car. Of course, he’s going to be racing dirt until he can no longer steer the wheel or push the gas pedal. For now, Kyle Larson has built a great base for title of “greatest driver.” He still has a lot more to do.