It’s a NASCAR game made in heaven. Kaulig Racing is obsessed with ‘trophy hunting’. Kyle Larson wants to win at Darlington, a track as demanding as the sport.
They go together like Magic and Bird, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, or Taylor Swift and… um, too bad. The thing is, Kaulig and Larson will team up at Darlington next month in the team’s All-Star car.
Kyle Larson hitchhikes with Kaulig Racing at Darlington
Kaulig Racing announced Wednesday that 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson will drive the No. 10 Chevy in the May 13 Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway. HendrickCars.com sponsors the car.
Darlington will be Larson’s first appearance on Xfinity this season. He took part in three races last year, winning at Watkins Glen in a JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Hendrick Motorsports ended its full-time Xfinity presence after the 2007 season, but released the No. 17 Chevy for five races last year in preparation for the Cup Series race the next day.
Kaulig Racing started out as an Xfinity-only organization in 2016 and took the first of its 21 wins in 2019 with AJ Allmendinger and Ross Chastain. It’s been a contender ever since, and full-time drivers Chandler Smith and Daniel Hemric are third and 10erespectively, in points this year.
Kaulig Racing’s #10 Chevrolet has become a star car
Kaulig Racing has raced three full-time cars in the Xfinity Series over the past two years, but had to drop to two this year after Landon Cassill lost its main sponsor, cryptocurrency firm Voyager, to bankruptcy.
Rather than let the #10 Chevy idle, Kaulig turned it into an all-star car. His own Cup Series drivers AJ Allmendinger and Justin Haley raced in the car, as did Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon and truck series veteran Derek Kraus.
Allmendinger, one of the best drivers on the road circuits, won at the Circuit of the Americas. Busch, winner of 102 races in the second-tier series, has finished fourth and ninth so far and will compete three more times.
In practice, keeping the car on the track makes sense for Kaulig since big names like Busch and Kyle Larson bring sponsor money with them. There’s also pride involved as owner Matt Kaulig and president Chris Rice frequently speak of the organization’s passion for “trophy hunting.” Plus, working with the most successful organization in Cup history (Kaulig has a formal alliance with Richard Childress Racing) can’t hurt.
“Kyle is really important to our sport right now and we’re thrilled to have him on our program at Kaulig Racing,” Rice said. “Building our relationship with Hendrick Motorsports is amazing for us and fun for everyone involved.”
Kyle Larson made winning at Darlington a priority
Hendrick Motorsports star Kyle Larson is already on the schedule to drive his team’s No. 17 Chevy at Darlington on Sept. 2, the day before the Southern 500 in the Cup Series. The other three intended uses of the HMS Xfinity Series car by Larson and his teammates are on road courses.
The objective of the drivers duplicating the weekend is to better understand the track on Saturday in order to be at the top of their form in the Cup Series on Sunday. The fact that Larson uses two opportunities on the same oval shows how badly he wants to win there.
“I always look forward to going to Darlington,” Larson told the Hendrick Motorsports website earlier this year. “I’ve always wanted to win at Bristol, and we won a race at Bristol (in 2021). So this track is kind of next on my list. I want to win everywhere, but Darlington is a track I’m going to go to. I’ve been very fast in the past, so I’m still excited for this race.
Now he thinks a Kaulig car can get him to Victory Lane on Saturday – or at least give him the edge to get the job done on Sunday.
“Darlington is a tough track and definitely one at the top of my list that I can’t wait to win,” he reiterated in Kaulig’s announcement. “The Kaulig Xfinity cars have also been very fast this year so I’m grateful for the opportunity to race in doubles and hopefully we have a good chance of winning.”
Have a question or comment about the race? Sportscasting’s John Moriello does a mailbag column every Friday. Write to him at [email protected]