It's time to talk about Kyle Larson's case for all-time greatness

Larson is still in only his 11th season at NASCAR's top level, and only his fourth in elite equipment with Hendrick Motorsports. He only has one Cup Series championship (2021) and his 28 career wins leave him tied for 30th on the all-time list. Yet, performances like Saturday's prove that there is already a case for Larson being among the greatest NASCAR drivers to ever strap on a helmet.

Strictly as a raw talent, Larson is the best driver to come along since at least Tony Stewart, if not since the late, great Dale Earnhardt. He can check out and control a race better than any other driver by a wide margin, and he can also slice his way through the field like no one else can. He's put together memorable drives such as the 2023 All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro and at the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis this season by charging from deep in the pack on days when passing was extremely difficult.

His only downfall is his tendency to sometimes overdrive and take himself out of contention, but that can mostly be chalked up to driving in an age where the races are more unpredictable than they've ever been before. It's not a coincidence that Larson's dominant showing on Saturday was in a fairly straightforward event, with only five caution flags slowing the action and none in the final 163 laps.

He's had plenty of other dominant showings that didn't result in wins, such as the Southern 500 at Darlington several weeks ago. In that race, Larson led 263 of 367 laps but a series of late cautions mixed up the running order with pit strategy, and he was unable to find his way back to the lead. Had Larson raced in any era prior to this one, when such late-race shakeups were far less common, he would have been untouchable.

Even as it stands, the gap between Larson and the field is the biggest it has been perhaps since Jimmie Johnson's reign of terror in the late 2000s. He's amassed 22 wins since joining Hendrick in 2021 -- the next-closest driver is his teammate William Byron with 12. In that same span, Larson has 5,893 laps led, with Denny Hamlin's 4,041 a very distant second. No one else has even topped the 3,000 mark.

Simply put, Larson has distanced himself into a class of his own among this generation's NASCAR stars. He's at the peak of his powers, and at 32 years old, he could stay there for at least another decade. All he has left to do in order to raise his historic placement is sustain his level of production long enough to compile more accolades over the course of his career.