For much of the 2026 season, Kyle Larson had little reason to feel comfortable about his title defense. The No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet went winless through the regular season, and Larson entered The Chase seventh, 55 points behind Denny Hamlin. Nine races later, he has turned that deficit into a 70-point advantage over the same rival.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
The turnaround has come through speed and execution, but his approach to the pressure has also changed.
“I do think it’s kept my mind off of racing, which has been good because I think I have this other thing that I’m like equally committed to,” Larson told Bob Pockrass for NASCAR on FOX. “Probably honestly put way more thought behind this marathon than I do the Chase, which I think has kept a lot of pressure off of me, oddly. I’ve definitely felt pressure, but I’ve felt more pressure in other years, and I think a lot of it’s just to do with my mind is on something else, but I’m not distracted from it either because I think it’s all kind of benefiting Sundays in a way.”
Pockrass reported that Larson is training for the California International Marathon on December 6 and has been logging more than 40 miles a week. He plans to run 15 miles along the Florida coast Friday morning, hours before Cup practice at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will be his first marathon, and he hopes to finish in less than three hours and 30 minutes.
Larson is preparing for one of the biggest races of his NASCAR career while following a schedule built around a different finish line. He does not see the marathon as a distraction. It gives him another target, with its own demands and measurable progress.
That separation may matter more than the mileage. A driver can spend a week replaying missed opportunities, calculating points, and imagining what championship Sunday might bring. Larson’s training gives those thoughts competition. He still has to prepare the car, work with crew chief Cliff Daniels, and execute, but the title does not have to occupy every hour.
The results have been difficult to argue with. Larson has scored 424 points through nine Chase races, the most of any driver, with three victories, six top-five finishes and eight top-10s. His 6.78 average finish reflects a run that has outpaced his rivals. He has outscored Hamlin by 125 points in the postseason after entering it winless through 26 regular-season races.
Larson’s DNF at Phoenix, after handling trouble and a cut tire, reduced a 49-point lead to five. He answered at Talladega, charging from 11th on the final lap to win, then finished ninth at Martinsville to preserve a cushion. The response says as much about the No. 5 team as the victories do.
His challengers have taken different routes to Homestead. Christopher Bell, 67 points behind, has shown speed but was hurt by a damaging Talladega afternoon and earlier setbacks at Gateway and Las Vegas. Hamlin, 70 points back, entered The Chase as the top seed after four regular-season wins. Trouble at Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Martinsville steadily eroded that advantage.
Both are now chasing Larson rather than controlling the standings. Bell needs a win and a major points swing; Hamlin faces a similarly narrow path. Larson needs nine points to clinch. If he scores no stage points, a 28th-place finish is enough.
There is precedent for a champion finding perspective beyond the garage. Jimmie Johnson maintained an interest in cycling and endurance fitness during his NASCAR career, taking on challenges that demanded discipline away from the track. Those pursuits did not replace the work of racing; they gave him another outlet. Larson’s marathon follows a similar principle, although he is taking it on with the championship unresolved.
His second target arrives four weeks after Homestead. First, he must finish the job in Florida. The training may help him keep the title fight in perspective, but it cannot make the final race routine.
Homestead is familiar territory. Larson won there in 2025, but the points cushion is no guarantee. Bell and Hamlin must take risks; Larson must avoid the kind of trouble that could turn a comfortable afternoon into a scramble.
He has spent the Chase proving he can recover, score heavily, and keep the No. 5 Chevrolet near the front. Now he needs nine points, not another statement victory. The marathon has given him a finish line to think about. One remains directly ahead.