NASCAR insider compares Kyle Larson’s Kansas dominance to Kansas City Chiefs

Kyle Larson dominated on his way to another win at Kansas Speedway over the weekend. For Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, the Elk Grove, California native is starting to evoke comparisons to the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs.

Evidently, Larson being able to come to a track and simply assert himself over the rest of the field makes Gluck think about the way Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs can do that any given week in the NFL. He explained the similarities on the latest episode of The Teardown following Sunday’s race.

“I think what Larson did was very, very Chiefs today,” Gluck stated. “If you don’t like the Chiefs, you know what I’m talking about. I’m a Broncos fan. So, it’s sort of like that, ‘Anybody but the Chiefs. Oh no, not the Chiefs again. Oh, they’re dominating again. Oh, God.’ You know, it gets relentless.

“It’s sort of like this relentless excellence, right? I think that was a very Larson, a very Chiefs thing, what Larson did. You know, they’re on the best team. They executed. They kicked everybody’s butt. Game over. So, that’s where I’m at with it.”

Alas, it’s tough to argue with Gluck’s sentiment. Larson’s performance would have had Mahomes and company proud. The Hendrick Motorsports wheelman started on pole, won Stage 1, won Stage 2, led 221 laps, had the fastest lap and of course, won the race.

It was the perfect weekend at Kansas. Those 221 laps out front set a NASCAR record for most laps led in a Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway, as well.

The former Cup Series champion was impossible to stop on Sunday, and that’s what he can do when he’s on. He almost hinted at the fact that this race might be a bit “boring” earlier in the weekend, then he went out and dominated a very good Cup Series field at Kansas. 

Last year, he won by 0.001 seconds. This year, he led 200+ laps and coasted to the finish as his tires appeared to wear out in the final turns. Larson and Cliff Daniels remain an elite and dangerous duo, and that second Cup championship might not be far away.

The Chiefs came up just short last season after a dominating regular season, similar to Kyle Larson in 2024. Kansas City will be looking to bounce back and win another title in 2025, and it seems like the Hendrick Motorsports driver is providing the blueprint for how to get it done so far this season.