Kyle Larson on what it’s like for NASCAR stars – Sports News
Kyle Larson is quickly set to start his NASCAR Cup Series title protection (Image: Getty)
The climate Gods have wreaked havoc with the annual NASCAR Cook Out Clash, which was initially scheduled to be held on Sunday, Feb. 1, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
However, thanks to a different dousing of snow which blanketed the historic quarter-mile asphalt oval, the race was initially moved to Monday, earlier than being moved back again, this time to Wednesday, Feb. 4.
Whether or not the Cup Series season-opening exhibition race will, the truth is, be held as deliberate stays to be seen, with snow and temperatures as low as 27 levels Fahrenheit forecast for the world as of noon Monday, as per The Weather Channel.
Should it go forward, whereas the followers within the grandstands could also be in need of a few additional blankets, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson has defined that the drivers will likely be largely unaffected as soon as seated of their NextGen automobiles.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever competed when it’s that cold, but thankfully for us, we’re inside of a stock car, which is basically like an oven, so that’ll help,” the reigning two-time champion advised Motorsports Today on Saturday.
Chase Elliott received the 2025 Cook Out Clash narrowly forward of Ryan Blaney (Image: Getty)
“I think, honestly, I think it’ll feel fine for us inside the car. I wouldn’t be surprised if you still break somewhat of a sweat in there, just because all the temps from internally, and it’s not windy in there because we’re going so slow.
“But I feel for the crews and mechanics and fans and NASCAR officials, everybody who’s there outside in the cold. But we love the sport, and we’ll compete in any conditions.”
This sentiment mirrored that of Trackhouse Racing rookie Connor Zilisch, who not too long ago advised SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that whereas the circumstances “certainly changes a little bit on the track, and in the car, it’s going to be really, really comfortable because usually we’re hot.
“So when it’s cold and really cold, the car still gets warm, but it’s not hot. So it’ll be nice inside the race car, where all the fans are freezing up in the grandstands.
“But yeah, I don’t honestly know. I’ve never really raced a stock car in sub-30 temperatures. So I’m sure there’s outlap, and just getting your tires up to temp is really important, but I’m sure the track will have a lot of grip, and we’ll be fast once we do get some temperature and all the stuff inside the car and the tires.
“So I’m excited to see what it’s like and just hopefully that the bad weather can hold off and we can go racing.”
The drivers’ need to go racing was evident on Monday, with each Ricky Stenhouse Jr. of Hyak Motorsports and Todd Gilliland of Front Row Motorsports out within the grandstands serving to shovel snow into buckets.
Assuming the race goes forward as deliberate on Wednesday, Chase Elliott within the No. 9 Hendrick Chevrolet will likely be trying to defend his crown, having staved off a outstanding comeback from the rear of the grid by Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney final season.
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