It was a busy and slightly chaotic start to Championship weekend for the Hendrick Motorsports camp. Kyle Larson’s No. 5 team found themselves deep in the garage area on Friday, dealing with tire setup tweaks, wall scrapes, and last-minute adjustments that ran longer than expected.

Larson’s team was so focused on solving setup issues and analyzing data that they completely missed their scheduled media availability. That championship pressure has kicked in well for all, and acts like these are proving it. Crew chief Cliff Daniels now faced the media to apologize for the same and update on what exactly is the team’s state.

HMS’ garage grind misses the mic

While speaking with the press, Daniels said, “It was extended for a little while with the tire issues. Kyle and I were completely locked into what we had going on and I was looking at the car and before I knew it I missed our time, so my apologies for that.” Their practice followed a tight plan with short runs, long runs, and a focus on balance.

Daniels explained, “Kyle feels pretty comfortable in the car. We were looking for a few different things through our practice progression yesterday.  A couple of  things we need to work on, scuff the wall a little bit, so a little bit of repairs on the car, but that’s okay.”

Larson brushed the wall while pushing for grip, as the tire pressure was low and the camber was high. The crew quickly made repairs and kept gathering data for qualifying and race trim. Daniels stayed positive, saying, “Overall, we’re in a reasonable spot. Got to make a few adjustments this morning with the team this morning at the hotel. Everybody was fresh and ready so we’re locked in.”

The Hendrick simulation tools helped the process, with early hotel meetings to review data from the night before. The team made quick changes that fit within the short practice windows allowed under Next Gen rules. Daniels looked at the rest of the field and said, “I could see it a little bit in the race. Just people getting more aggressive now that the field is kind of reset from practice.”

Tire troubles hit several teams, including Chase Briscoe, Daniel Suárez, and Kyle Busch, all of whom had left-rear tire failures. “That was chaos,” said Briscoe, as they were about to lose their third tire in their last run. His crew chief, James Small, also added, “Too low on air, too much camber, just too aggressive.”

William Byron’s crew chief, Rudy Fugle, also highlighted another issue of how they focused more on the right-side tire failures, ignoring the left. “We were watching the right side. Nobody expected the lefts to go like this.” he said.

Daniels saw it as a result of setups pushing limits. “I really do think the practice issues were more from just being aggressive based on the way force test, knowing that it was more of a right side thing than a left side thing,” he explained.

Goodyear confirmed that the problems came from teams running low air pressures and high camber to gain grip, not from tire defects. Daniels added, “Certainly surprised at how many five or six cars that had issues yesterday? So that was a bit of a surprise, you know, just for the number. And certainly we’ve looked at all the information that we began to try to find the right balance of getting the grip that you want out of the tire and still making it live.”

Larson’s team has always been strong at managing tire wear over long runs. Their pace looked solid, the fixes were complete, and the data gathered put the No. 5 Chevrolet in a good position for the race.

After the garage work settled, Larson turned his thoughts to the future and his family.

Larson eyes 40

Kyle Larson lines up at Phoenix against Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, and William Byron. Larson is 33 and already a champion, while Hamlin, at 44, is still chasing his first title. Larson said, “I can absolutely see myself racing till I’m 40. After that, it’s kind of when I want to reevaluate. I could still go another five, seven, 10, or stop then.”

When asked why 40, Larson explained, “Well, Owen will be 18. Audrey will be mid-teens. Cooper will be about 10. I think life is going to look completely different for them.

“I’m sure they’ll be hopefully successful. If Owen is racing or Audrey is racing, whatever, they’ll have a lot going on in their lives then. I would think right now I would want to be a part of that.”

Owen, 11, and Audrey, 7, Larson’s children, are already racing in junior divisions. Audrey earned her first win at Millbridge Speedway in September 2025, just before the Bristol weekend. Dirt racing continues to be a family passion, and the same spark that drives Larson is showing up in his kids.

Cooper, now two and a half, is still too young to race but will likely join his siblings in the future. Whether the family continues in racing or shifts gears, Larson plans to stay close to it.

As Denny Hamlin continues his chase for a first championship, Larson balances his speed on the track with his priorities at home. The Phoenix race represents both a title opportunity and a turning point in how Larson sees his future.

Practice troubles are behind them, and life plans are ahead. Daniels has the car ready, and Larson is focused on the bigger picture. Hendrick Motorsports looks strong, and for Larson, family comes first.