Larson edges Hamlin for NASCAR title; Blaney wins season finale

NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson celebrates his championship victory following the Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Kyle Larson edges Denny Hamlin for NASCAR title in OT; Ryan Blaney wins season finale

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Nov 2, 2025 7:14 PM ET

Ryan Blaney won Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway, but it was Kyle Larson who took home the 2025 Cup Series championship in overtime.

A caution with three laps to go due to Championship 4 contender William Byron blowing a tire brought the field down pit road one final time. Larson opted to take two tires, while Hamlin and Chase Briscoe took four.

The two tire call ended up being the right one, as a great restart from Larson gave him enough of a buffer to finish third and win the title over Hamlin.

THE TIRE STRATEGY PAYS OFF!

KYLE LARSON IS THE 2025 NASCAR CUP SERIES CHAMPION! pic.twitter.com/O3eNtB7IrL
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) November 3, 2025

"I can't believe it," Larson told NBC Sports. "We didn't lead a lap today and somehow won the championship."

Hamlin finished sixth and came up one spot short of his first Cup Series title.

For Blaney, the win is his third of 2025. Byron won Stage 1, while Hamlin won Stage 2 and led a race-high 208 of 319 laps.

Brad Keselowski, Larson, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five, with Hamlin, Josh Berry, Michael McDowell, Ryan Preece and Chase Elliott completing the top 10.

Other notable finishers include Christopher Bell in 11th, Alex Bowman in 15th, Briscoe in 18th, Byron in 33rd and Bubba Wallace in 37th.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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