Kyle Larson’s evening at the Placerville Speedway got off to a chaotic start. During Heat 1, with 10 laps to go, after contact with Blake Reinbold, he somehow saved the car on two wheels and fought his way back into contention. It was one of those vintage Larson moments, where he was on the brink of disaster, yet managed to remain in the fight. But if the first scare was a reminder of how unpredictable midget racing can be, what came later was something else entirely.

Because this time, Larson wasn’t able to get away with a near-wreck tragedy. As the Hangtown 100 unfolded, a heated battle for the lead ended in a flip, a wrecked car, and a sarcastic gesture from Kyle Larson, echoing around the dirt racing world.

Kyle Larson’s race goes from dominance to disaster

Kyle Larson came into the Hangtown 100 main event looking like the class of the field. Then came the major turning point… With just five laps to go, Larson was battling for the lead when déjà vu struck. As he charged into the corner, his front wheels made contact with Daison Pursley’s rear bumper…

It was almost like the exact scenario earlier, but this time, there was no saving it. Larson’s car lifted, tipped, and violently rolled onto its side. Just like that, his dominant night was over.

But it was what came next that stole the show. Larson didn’t stomp away or start shouting. Instead, he turned toward Pursley and delivered a slow, sarcastic applause while walking away from the crash. As if this wasn’t enough, he gave his fellow racer two exaggerated thumbs ups.

Fans knew what it meant. So did Pursley. Larson had every right to be frustrated. He’d controlled nearly the entire race, survived one near disaster already, and was closing in on a Hangtown win until someone else decided the outcome. He ended the night 15th in the 25-car field, retiring five laps short. But apart from this, there’s another moment from his chat with the press that’s gaining significant traction on the internet.

Larson feels a strange personal sting after hearing “Mooresville, North Carolina”

For all the laps he’s led, all the trophies he’s lifted, and all the chants that echo his name, Kyle Larson still can’t shake one oddly emotional moment. It’s hearing his kids introduced as being from somewhere other than Elk Grove, California. To Larson, Elk Grove isn’t just a dot on a map.

It’s the beginning. The dirt tracks. The kart races. The Saturday nights with family in the stands. It’s where he learned to fight for every inch. So, coming back to celebrate another milestone, this time as a two-time Cup champion, stirred something more profound than nostalgia.

“It’s great,” Larson said of returning home, surrounded by familiar faces. He admitted that he doesn’t return often, and when he does, it’s usually to Grass Valley, where his wife, Katelyn, grew up. But in Elk Grove, something still tugs at him.

“It is a bit odd,” he confessed. “When I hear Owen or Audrey’s name get announced on the starting lineup of whatever race that they’re running, and it’s Mooresville, North Carolina, cuz I’m always associated with Elk Grove, California. And will always be too.”

North Carolina, to Larson, is familiar in its own way. The racing culture, rolling hills, close to the mountains, and the ocean. It’s a place like where he grew up.

Owen, now ten, is already racing. However, Larson jokes he hopes the kid picks up golf, a hobby he’s too busy to enjoy himself. Audrey races too and now plays ice hockey, something entirely foreign for dirt-track California roots.

Larson knows Elk Grove may never be their hometown. But it will always be his. And that matters! Even if it only stings in those small, quiet introductions before the engines fire.