Elk Grove, California. December 5, 2011. For Kyle Larson, 2011 will be forever be
remembered as his breakout season onto the national motorsports scene. The Elk Grove,
California 19 year old showed his emerging skills as he led the short track national win
list with 21 feature victories, on both dirt and pavement. Already known for his
versatility behind the wheel in a variety of race cars, the highlight of Larson’s
season was becoming the first ever to win in all five of the major national open wheel
touring series in the same year. In doing so, Larson joined with 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup
Champion Tony Stewart to become the only drivers to ever win features in the World of
Outlaws, the American Sprint Car Series, and all three divisions of the United States Auto
Club.
The season started with the hiring of Larson by USAC master mechanic and car owner Keith
Kunz for an assault on the midget and Silver Crown national championships. However,
Larson’s opening races were in mid February as the ASCS National Series for 360
winged sprint cars made their first ever foray into California for a pair of races at
Tulare and Hanford. Larson landed the ride in the potent Finley Farms car and, after
scoring a fourth place finish at Tulare, he led every lap to take his first ever national
win at Hanford three nights later.
In their first pairing together, Larson and the Kunz Motorsports Toyota Racing Development
Bullet swept both nights of the unsanctioned Copper on Dirt Classic in dominating fashion
at Tucson, Arizona’s USA Raceway a week later. The USAC midget season kicked into
high gear for Larson during the Indiana Midget week as he captured his first win at
Bloomington Speedway in June and nearly won the Speedweek title, settling for second
behind two time defending series champion Bryan Clauson by four points.
In early July Larson hooked up again with Jason and Scott Finley and the Finley Farms team
to contest the ASCS Northwest Regional Speedweek. In four outings Larson began with three
second place finishes before earning the Speedweek championship title with a win at
Willamette Speedway in Lebanon, Oregon.
In late July Larson began an amazing run of big wins as he won his first ever pavement
race at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Raceway Park in USAC midget competition. A week later
he captured his first POWRi midget win at US 36 Raceway in Osborn, Missouri. The following
week Larson swept the 34th Annual Belleville Midget Nationals in his first ever visit to
the intimidating Kansas high banked half mile.
Three nights later Larson enhanced his growing reputation when he was a last minute
replacement in the historic Hoffman sprint car for the highest paying race in non wing
sprint car racing, the Ultimate Challenge at Oskaloosa, Iowa. The winningest car in USAC
racing history, which had seen some recent lean times, was on a rail all night as Larson
swept every race he entered while taking home the $15,000 paycheck in his first non wing
sprint car win. Three nights after that Larson returned to his home state to reunite with
the Finley family and won his fifth race in succession in an Interstate Sprint Car Series
360 winged event at Siskiyou Speedway in Yreka.
On September 4th Larson won his first ever Silver Crown race in the Kunz IWX Motor Freight
car in the Ted Horn Memorial on the dirt mile at DuQuoin, Illinois, becoming the youngest
winner in the history of the event. In the process he also became the only driver in 2011
USAC competition to win in all three of their divisions. Three nights later, in a return
to California, Larson won again in a non wing sprinter as he piloted the Brent Kaeding
owned, Stadelhofer Construction sponsored car in the USAC/CRA event at Silver Dollar
Speedway in Chico.
That was just a prelude to the biggest sprint car race on the West Coast held at the same
facility, the Gold Cup Race of Champions for the World of Outlaws. With the addition of
wings on the Kaeding/ Stadelhofer mount Larson led all 40 laps to become the youngest
winner in the 58 editions of the prestigious event, in what Larson has described as the
biggest win of his career.
Garnering another POWRi midget win at Spoon River Speedway in Canton, Illinois a week
later, Larson followed that up with his first ever visit to the historic Eldora Speedway
in Rossburg, Ohio. The daunting facility owned by Stewart is not kind to newcomers, but it
was there that Larson grabbed the attention of the racing world.
Continuing his incredible string of big wins Larson did it in historic proportion by
sweeping all three USAC divisions of the 30th Annual 4 Crown Nationals, joining Jack
Hewitt, who also won in a modified, as the only two drivers to take all victories in one
night. The wins came aboard Kunz’ midget and Silver Crown cars, while Larson remained
undefeated in the Hoffman sprint car. Stewart was in attendance and rewarded Larson with a
$10,000 bonus for the astonishing sweep.
Back in California six nights later Larson pulled off one of his most improbable wins of
the season. Relegated to transferring from the B main, and then starting 17th in the
feature, he slice his way to the front and took the preliminary night win at the 360 Fall
Nationals for 360 winged sprint cars at Chico. Returning to the Midwest the following
week, Larson picked up his fourth USAC National Midget Series win as the tour made its way
to the Gold Crown Nationals in Pontoon Beach, Illinois.
His final win of the season came at his favorite venue in racing, the Thunderbowl Raceway
at Tulare. With over 70 cars on hand Larson drove to a convincing win as he lapped up to
fifth place in the highest paying race in the country for 360 winged sprint cars, the
Trophy Cup.
Possibly the busiest racer in America in 2011 Larson’s season stats show 90 total
starts, with wins coming in six different types of race cars. Nine wins came in 22 midget
starts on dirt, with five wins in 22 winged 360 sprint car starts, three wins in 11 non
wing dirt starts, two wins in five dirt Silver Crown starts, one win in 10 paved midget
starts, and one win in 14 winged 410 sprint car starts. The only cars Larson did not win
in that he competed were Silver Crown and sprint cars on pavement, where he made only four
and two starts respectively.
Underlining his adaptability to new situations, with virtually no pavement experience in
his background prior to the beginning of 2011, Larson showed he was a very quick study in
all three of USAC’s disciplines. The first time he attempted qualification runs on
pavement in a midget, sprint car, and Silver Crown car Larson led the way with fast time
in each machine.
Also, in perhaps the most significant emphasis of the young driver’s ability to
adjust and immediately read a race track, Larson was able to sweep victories in his first
appearance at possibly the two most frightening dirt tracks in existence, Belleville and
Eldora. He also picked up wins in first time visits to the DuQuoin Mile, US 36 Raceway,
Spoon River Speedway, Willamette Speedway, and Siskiyou Speedway.
In the two series Larson contested for championships, the USAC Midgets and Silver Crown,
the neophyte won the Rookie of the Year honors and came away with third place finishes in
each division. He also placed second in the final tally for the USAC National Drivers
Championship, which only counts a drivers best 25 finishes in all three divisions
combined.
Although no season long championships were secured Larson’s other accomplishments
were too much to overlook on a larger scale. To cap his remarkable season Larson was
recently nominated for one of the most distinguished awards in motorsports, the Speed
Performer of the Year, which presents the 100 pound Mario Andretti Trophy for the top
season long achievement in worldwide motorsports in 2011.
Joining with defending winner Formula One World Champion Sebastian Vettel, Moto GP World
Champion Casey Stoner, Supercross and Motocross Champion Ryan Villopoto, Indycar Champion
Dario Franchitti, Grand Am Champion Scott Pruett, and NASCAR Champion Stewart, Larson
finds himself in rarified air just to be included with the group. The soon to be
announcement will be made on a special edition of the Speed Report on Speed Channel
sometime in the near future.
Larson’s racing efforts are sponsored by: Keith Kunz Motorsports, Toyota Racing
Development, Stadelhofer Contstuction, ButlerBuilt Seats, Peppermill Resort and Casino,
IWX Motor Freight, Speedway Engineering, JW Web Design, Finley Farms, Kaeding Performance,
Howard Johnson’s of Lima, Ohio, Simpson Racing Products, Safety Solutions, Oakley and
ParkerStore of Phoenix.
