Kyle Larson may be a man of few words, but when those words are about Shane Van Gisbergen, they land like a headline. As the reigning Cup Series champion chases another chapter in his NASCAR legacy, Larson has stumbled out of the gate in the season’s first two races. What he hasn’t missed, though, is SVG’s rapid evolution — and that hasn’t gone unnoticed inside the Hendrick Motorsports camp.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
The progress is far more undeniable than anyone expected, and the Elk Grove native didn’t hesitate to tip his cap to the Kiwi ahead of the COTA race in Austin, Texas.
“Sometimes, I feel like when you look at his stuff, you take it with a grain of salt, slightly,” Larson said. “But yeah, no, he’s just better at everything than us. But I think the thing that he’s a lot better at than we are is just his race craft, like how he sees opportunities for passing and things like that.”
And this progress can already be seen early in 2026.
While the Daytona 500, the big superspeedway, showed that even road-course royalty can get humbled by the tradition of chaos and pack drafting. Tyler Reddick hoisted the Harley J. Earl trophy, and SVG checked up 30th after dodging wrecks and trying to keep his No.97 Chevrolet intact through the mayhem of Daytona Beach.
That wasn’t exactly his red carpet moment, but then at Atlanta’s AutoTrader 400, the three-time supercar champion traded chaos for confidence. After a couple of spins and some classic sliding door oval antics, he charged back into contention and finished sixth, his best Oval Cup result yet, in just his second year of Cup racing, reminding everyone that he is not just a road course wizard.
Instead of getting left in the dust at places like Daytona and Kansas as he did early in his NASCAR career, SVG’s recent oval outings have looked hopeful. Pundits are noticing that what used to be a huge gap between him and the seasoned oval aces has narrowed.
And more importantly, he still poses a threat in road-course races. In 2025, the Trackhouse Racing driver made it his personal mission to own street courses, winning five of six, leading more laps than most drivers accumulate in their careers, and making it look like a casual Sunday drive.
“He’s better at everything than us”
Kyle Larson praises the road course prowess of Shane van Gisbergen. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/OqueYQiMB7
— Frontstretch (@Frontstretch) February 28, 2026
“I might not see what he sees, and then he makes a move, and you’re like, wow. I would never even have thought of making a pass there or like that. So it’s really, really fun to watch,” the Hendrick Motorsports driver added. “Fun to try to do yourself, but we’re not as good at executing it as he is. And then yeah, his tire conservation stuff is really impressive. I think that’s a combination of him and probably his input to car setup and all that.”
SVG handles complex left-right combos with fluidity and aggression, unfazed by pressure. According to Larson, he is redefining the standard of how fast an outsider can evolve in NASCAR.
Additionally, SVG’s ex-teammate didn’t hold back his praise on the Kiwi ahead of the race at COTA. Daniel Suarez believes that the increased horsepower and SVG’s ability to handle right-corner braking techniques will definitely give him an edge.
So while Larson looks to dominate this year as well, he cannot help but be beyond alert with SVG around. But as the HMS driver’s 2026 season started on the wrong foot, NASCAR insiders are raising concerns about his season as a whole.
Larson’s 2026 season is in jeopardy
Larson rolled into the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season stamped as an early championship favorite. But two races in, the script has already hit turbulence. A misjudgment at Atlanta, combined with an overwhelming opening stretch, has some insiders suggesting the No. 5 camp may have dug itself into an early points deficit.
On a recent episode of The Teardown, Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck discussed Larson’s late-stage move at EchoPark Speedway. An aggressive attempt to seize position ended in contact, a crash, and ultimately a 32nd-place result, a costly swing that knocked Larson down to 21st in the standings after only two events.
“The Kyle Larson one is really tough,” Gluck said. “This is a guy you’re thinking is going to contend for the regular-season championship. In order to win a championship this year, we’ve heard Denny Hamlin say you need to be in the top three in points in the regular season because of all the bonus points. You can’t be too far back.”
What made the setback even worse was how promising things looked moments earlier. Larson had positioned himself near the front late in the stage, lined up to bank valuable stage points before abruptly cutting down the track and making contact with SVG — a move that unraveled his afternoon in seconds. But not all is lost; Larson will have many opportunities to overcome his points deficit.