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Kyle Larson reveals message to protégé Corey Day amid criticism from NASCAR world

Originally posted on 5 GOATs | By Nick Geddes | Last updated Mar 11, 2026 5:12 PM ET

Kyle Larson will be in the field for Saturday’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Larson will race alongside his protégé, Corey Day, who is competing in his first full-time season in the NOAPS with Hendrick Motorsports.

Day’s start to the 2026 season has been successful from a results standpoint, but rocky from a relationships on the racetrack standpoint. Notably, his on-track run-ins with JR Motorsports drivers have had the NASCAR world questioning if he’s ready to be in the position that he’s in.

Being in a Hendrick seat has to be a lot to take in for a 20-year-old who made a name for himself in dirt racing, the same way Larson did. Larson is understanding of what Day is going through, and still believes his talent will ultimately shine through.

“I would he say he’s definitely — finally, I guess this weekend he had a good weekend and probably a much better Monday — but the previous three Mondays I know were rough and difficult and a lot of things he had to work through throughout the weeks. So, for me on that side, he was already getting a lot of mentoring and what not. For me, it was lending support and just letting him know that we all believe in him and keep your head high and keep focused on the process,” Larson told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports.

“We’ve all had to go through moments like this in our career, so it’s nothing new. He’s gonna be fine. He’ll get through this rough stretch and learn the sport more, learn the cars more, learn how to handle you more and be good. It’s a lot to take in as a 20-year-old coming from dirt racing. I trust him, the team trusts him, and I look forward to seeing his continued progression.”

Kyle Larson will compete in the OReilly Series race this weekend at Las Vegas. He'll get to race around Corey Day, and I was wondering how Larson views his role in trying to help mentor the sprint-car racer in his transition to stock cars. @NASCARONFOX pic.twitter.com/pBqOZOXuDq
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) March 11, 2026

Corey Day experiencing ‘growing pains’ in NASCAR

Day was stacking up the incidents in the first three races of the season. At Atlanta, it was an incident with Justin Allgaier and Carson Kvapil which ended their runs early. Then at COTA, he wiped out Connor Zilisch, who called Day an “ absolute hack” and later demanded an apology.

Day’s run-ins with JRM drivers are notable in that Hendrick’s No. 17 team is closely aligned with JRM, essentially an additional car for them. Dale Earnhardt Jr. revealed last Tuesday that a meeting took place between himself, Day, and Rick Hendrick after what happened at COTA.

Day had a clean race this past Saturday at Phoenix Raceway, finishing ninth. Day, amid all the noise, is eight in the points standings with three consecutive top-10 finishes. He recently described what’s been happening with other drivers as “growing pains.”

“Yeah, I’m definitely getting everyone’s opinion on how to handle myself off the track and like I said, it’s just stuff I’ve never dealt with,” Day said on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “It’s just growing pains, right? I’m racing at the highest level, and I’m a rookie. So, it’s stuff that’s gonna happen, unfortunately.”

This article first appeared on 5 GOATs and was syndicated with permission.

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