Kyle Larson Secures Third NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Homestead

Kyle Larson officially cemented his status among stock car racing legends on Sunday by capturing his third NASCAR Cup Series championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Entering the 400-mile season finale with a commanding lead in the standings, Larson needed only nine points to mathematically secure the title and wrapped it up early in the race.

The 34-year-old driver became the first back-to-back champion since Jimmie Johnson accomplished the feat, with Johnson winning five consecutive titles starting in 2006. Larson also joined an exclusive club as the 11th driver in NASCAR history to earn three or more Cup titles, sharing the milestone with greats like Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, and Joey Logano.

Larson's path to the championship was anchored by a stellar postseason performance that included three victories across the previous nine playoff events and top-ten finishes in eight of them. Coming into the weekend with a 67-point advantage over his closest challenger, Christopher Bell, Larson secured the necessary points by taking a single point for starting and earning seven additional points by finishing fourth in the opening stage.

The weekend's action at the 1.5-mile oval began with high drama during Saturday's qualifying sessions. Chase Briscoe snagged the pole position for the season finale with a fast lap of 32.396 seconds in his Bass Pro Shops Toyota, edging out Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin by just 0.017 seconds. Briscoe admitted that qualifying had been a struggle for his team throughout the season despite earning seven poles the previous year.

Hamlin reflected on narrowly missing out on the top starting spot, noting that he likely tried to save his tires a bit too much coming to the green flag and found his car much freer than anticipated in Turn 4. Meanwhile, the qualifying session brought trouble for outgoing RFK Racing driver Brad Keselowski, who lost control of his vehicle exiting Turn 4 and spun into the inside wall due to slick track conditions.

Larson's title victory marks the conclusion of NASCAR's revamped Chase championship format, which returned for the 2026 season and awards the title to the driver accumulating the most points across the 10-race postseason rather than relying on a single winner-take-all race. With another championship safely secured, Larson adds to an impressive career resume that includes success across various racing disciplines and multiple dirt-track events around the world.