“I want to win both stages by 15 seconds and win the race by 30. That’s my goal.” After winning in Vegas, the unstoppable Kyle Larson immediately tried to protect his Homestead reign. But why 15 seconds? The 2021 champion simply wished to surpass his last year’s triumph over pole winner William Byron in the playoff race.

Hendrick Motorsports’ #24 driver had captured the 1.5-mile racetrack until Larson ran 8 seconds ahead of Byron to win the first stage and eventually conquered the oval. As the #5 driver seeks to reestablish his terrain, here’s a look at his unparalleled dominance in Homestead a year ago. 

Kyle Larson usurps William Byron to crown himself in Homestead

Both Hendrick Motorsports stars Kyle Larons and William Byron qualified for the round of 12 playoffs in the 2022 season of the Cup Series. Unfortunately, Rick Hendrick’s defending champion Larson had his playoff hopes cut short at the Charlotte Roval while Byron surged ahead to the Round of 8. The multifaceted racer did not let that deter him from pursuing the owner’s title through his #5 Chevrolet. 

Larson recovered from his collision with Bubba Wallace in Las Vegas to shake up the playoff standings in the second race at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. After decimating all the playoff contenders in the first two stages, Larson led an unbelievable 196 out of 264 laps before the 3 lap show down with Ross Chastain. With Chastain merely 1.3 seconds behind the HMS driver, it was time for Kyle ‘Yung Money’ Larson to unleash his incomparable prowess.

With 2 laps to go, the gap increased to 1.5 seconds but AJ Allmendinger’s #16 Chevrolet closed in at 1.6 seconds to inflame the #5’s pressure. But Larson gave them permission to battle for the 2nd place and continued to lead the 199th lap of the 2022 Dixie Vodka 400. Larson’s car sprouted wings as he rounded off Turn 4 to mark the 19th win of his Cup career and the first-ever on that ground.

Watch this story: Kyle Larson: A Racing Prodigy’s Dream Journey

That spectacular performance played a role in restricting Byron to the Round of 8 while Larson took HMS to the Championship 4 race. The #5 ace was determined to vanquish his rivals en route to his second championship in three years. 

Larson on his way to Cup Series domination this year

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With his exceptional skills, Kyle Larson created the possibility of a split championship between the drivers’ and owners’ titles for the first time since the inception of the playoff format. That unusual circumstance was avoided when Joey Logano won the final race in Phoenix last season. This year, Larson has already booked his spot in Phoenix in the most extraordinary racing week of his career.

The versatile driver won his High Limit Sprint Cup Series, aced the Indie 500 initiation test and swept the stages at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway within the span of a single week. And still his hunger for victories remained unsatiated. In the post race conference, Kyle Larson made it clear wouldn’t let his playoff rivals get off easily in the coming race this weekend.

“It’s obviously nice to win and lock in and you can focus on Phoenix but at the same point, you can’t really look too far ahead of yourself. There are still two other races before then. I put a lot of pressure on myself going to Homestead. I want to have a great run there and I want to dominate.”

As William Byron and the remaining playoff contenders look ahead to salvage this weekend, they should prepare themselves to face resistance from the unquenchable winning thirst of Kyle Larson.

Read More: Joe Gibbs Gets Harsh Blow From Bubba Wallace Insider Claiming His Star Is “Not as Good as Kyle Larson”