WATCH: Defending Chili Bowl Champion Kyle Larson Misses Out on VIROC After a Last Lap Battle With Justin Grant

Some of the biggest names from NASCAR are warming up with the dirt of the Chili Bowl Nationals before the next season gets underway. And one of those names is the 2021 champion, Kyle Larson, who entered this year’s event as the defending champion.

Yet despite his ‘favorite status’ for this year as well, Larson tasted defeat in the Vacuworx Invitational Race against Justin Grant. But a Kyle Larson defeat isn’t without a battle until the end, and this was true as ever in the last lap of VIROC as well.

Larson gave it all he had, pushed as hard as he could but credit to Grant, he withstood all the advances the Cup Champion made at him and maintained his composure until the very end.

How did Kyle Larson and Justin Grant react after their showdown?

With a second-place finish, Kyle Larson reflected on what he could’ve done differently in the last few laps. He said, “I pulled the trigger every corner, but I should’ve went back to the top in three and four coming to two to go and I would’ve had a better run I think to make a move.”

The 29-year-old also stated the positives from this result as he said, “I’m really happy with my car. It’s night and day different from where it was earlier in the night and where we were out on the west coast.”

On the other hand, the winner Justin Grant admitted how the final laps “weren’t that much fun.”

“We were really, really good until about eight to go and then I kind of lost my entry grip. I went to search and try to figure out how to keep some speed going,” Grant said. He added, “Hopefully we’ll have something for Kyle, Chris (Bell) and these guys come Saturday.”

This hard-earned win over Kyle Larson is something Justin Grant would cherish dearly and hope he doesn’t end up in another such battle at the scraps with Larson in the coming days.

Because as one fan put it well on Twitter, “Larson makes you earn every… single… race. Every single lap, every single turn. You better strap up if you’re going to war with him.”

Kyle Larson Shows His Class Amidst the Air of Beef With Longtime Rival Christopher Bell