Kyle Larson in Favor of Change and NASCAR Adopting Podium-Style Celebrations Like F1

Kyle Larson in Favor of Change and NASCAR Adopting Podium-Style Celebrations Like F1 originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Kyle Larson is the one driver in the NASCAR Cup Series who understands better than his competitors what it’s like racing in different forms of motorsports. That’s because he does it weekly.

On Saturday, the Hendrick Motorsports driver met with media and talked about Sunday’s Cup Series race in Mexico, which will be the same series he competes in each week but very different because it’s the first international event since 1958.

During that session, The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi asked him if there was anything from this weekend south of the border that could be incorporated into future NASCAR races.

“I think maybe things will come up tomorrow and seeing how driver intros go or the post-race podium and stuff,” Larson said. “I think that could be a piece, an easy piece to incorporate to other weekends.”

Several minutes later, NBC’s Dustin Long followed up and asked for specifics on where the 2021 champ would like to see a potential podium-style celebration.

“I don’t know, maybe just your crown jewel events even would be a good start,” he said. “But I’m not sure. I come from dirt racing where the top three have to stop on the front stretch every night and do your interview, which we do interviews on pit road and stuff, so that’s not way different.

“Yeah, although it stinks sometimes when you’re frustrated and you gotta force a smile. It’s still — I think the fans appreciate seeing the top three drivers on the front stretch and the photos and whatnot. 

“And you look at other forms of motorsports and the post-race podium celebration. Like I look at Formula One, like they kind of celebrate the country that you’re from too playing the national anthem. We’re most all from America here. I just think that’s a nice added touch. 

“So yeah, I think there’s ways to look at it and make it kind of feel like our own. We’re not completely copying other forms of motorsports. But yeah, I think I heard Ross say it but it’s tough to run top three in the Cup series. So I think it should definitely be celebrated a little bit more — second and third should be celebrated a little bit more than it is not only for yourself and your team but your partners and whatnot.

“So, again, I think there’s ways that NASCAR can look at making it have their own kind of touch and feel. But, yeah, I think we’ll see how it goes tomorrow and like I thought the LA Clash thing was awesome to see, too. So, we’ve done it before. I think we could do it at other places.”

Related: Kyle Larson Admits to Change in Personal Life That His Fans Won’t Like

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 14, 2025, where it first appeared.

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