Nothing in this sport is set in stone, but Larson’s route to winning the Bill France Cup at the end of the 2024 season is as clear as it gets. He essentially outpaced the entire field throughout the race, and he still leads them all by 14 points in the standings. To accomplish that in this era of Next Gen parity is staggeringly incredible, and it’s difficult to imagine anyone else doing so.
Needless to say, he will most likely be the one to beat again this weekend at Iowa Speedway.
No. 5 opened with 11-2 odds to win. Sunday’s Iowa Corn 350 powered by Ethanol (7 p.m. ET, USA, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App) is barely behind dirt rival Christopher Bell, who is a 19-5 favourite to win. While Bell’s Iowa resume is likely the finest in the field, NASCAR hasn’t raced there since 2019, and it had a bit of a facelift in preparation for the inaugural Cup Series race, with a targeted resurfacing. Larson and Bell (together with Brad Keselowski to represent Ford) just ran a test in Iowa, which will undoubtedly provide those three – all three of whom are 2024 winners, oddly — a significant advantage over the competition.
Both drivers have been on a roll lately, but does it seem like anything is going to get in Larson’s way at this point? We’re seeing brilliance in real time, and this was the point in the season when things really clicked for Larson in 2021, as he switched on the afterburners on his way to 10 wins and his first championship. Despite Sonoma being only his third triumph in 2024, double-digit wins are still possible for him — it was also his third win that year.
He followed up his maiden victory in wine country that year with a trophy the next race at Nashville Superspeedway, giving him a win on Father’s Day for the second year in a row, which is quite unusual. The series has not raced on Father’s Day since Larson won in 2021.
Guess what Sunday is.
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