Can Kyle Larson continue historic trend in NASCAR?
With his win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last month, Kyle Larson broke a tie with three other NASCAR Cup Series drivers for the most wins in 2024.
Larson leads the field with four points race wins. Christopher Bell, William Byron and Denny Hamlin each have three wins.
“I hope that we can keep winning and keep running up front,” Larson said. “I feel like we’ve done a great job really all year.”
Larson is the NASCAR Cup Series points leader by 10 points. Statistically speaking, he is in great company. As the first four-time winner this season, history backs him up too.
In all seven seasons with the elimination-style playoffs with playoff points, the first four-time winner has never missed the Championship Four.
Three times has that driver gone on to win the championship (denoted in bold):
- Martin Truex Jr., 2017
- Kevin Harvick, 2018
- Kyle Busch, 2019
- Denny Hamlin, 2020
- Kyle Larson, 2021
- Chase Elliott, 2022
- William Byron, 2023
In contrast, the first four-time winner never made it to the Championship Four from 2014-16. The elimination-style format didn’t feature playoff points, which cut Brad Keselowski’s 2014 and 2016 championship runs short.
| Year | First Driver to 4 wins | Race No. | Total Wins | Details |
| 2014 | Brad Keselowski | 26 | 6 | Eliminated – Round of 8, Finished Fifth in Points |
| 2015 | Jimmie Johnson | 13 | 5 | Eliminated – Round of 16, Finished 10th in Points |
| 2016 | Brad Keselowski | 18 | 4 | Eliminated – Round of 12, Finished 12th in Points |
| 2017 | Martin Truex Jr. | 22 | 8 | Champion |
| 2018 | Kevin Harvick | 11 | 8 | Finished Third in Points |
| 2019 | Kyle Busch | 14 | 5 | Champion |
| 2020 | Denny Hamlin | 15 | 7 | Finished Fourth in Points |
| 2021 | Kyle Larson | 17 | 10 | Champion |
| 2022 | Chase Elliott | 21 | 5 | Finished Fourth in Points |
| 2023 | William Byron | 19 | 6 | Finished Third in Points |
| 2023 | Kyle Larson | 22 | ? | ? |
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Dominic Aragon View All
Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.
From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book "All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story" with racer Geoff Bodine.
Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.
You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.