Kyle Larson Lost The Championship Because Of Passing Inability
10 months agoAlthough Kyle Larson went into the NASCAR Cup Series finale at Phoenix as the championship favorite, he didn't really have the speed to match eventual champion Ryan Blaney or his teammate William Byron for most of the event. All three drivers were extremely close in speed throughout the event with Byron ranking third, Blaney ranking fifth, and Larson ranking sixth; the three had an average lap time differential of less than .03 seconds. Since the triumvirate of contenders were rarely far apart on the track, the championship probably came down to dueling ability. This greatly favored Blaney because he was significantly better at passing for the lead in 2023 than the other two with an on-track lead change record of 35-23 to Larson's 24-26 and Byron's 25-30. That exact order matches the championship result.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com