NASCAR: Five Drivers Most Likely To Win At Charlotte

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May 21, 2016; Concord, NC, USA; Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Larson (42) races to a segment finish to qualify for the All Star Race during the Sprint Showdown at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports /

The Underdog: Kyle Larson

Stats at Charlotte:

Wins: 0
Top-5’s: 0
Top-10’s: 1
Laps Led: 8

This one was a tough. With so many young drivers (Elliott, Blaney, Dillon) who could all get a first win this weekend, I had to choose Kyle Larson as the most likely.

He certainly has not had much luck in his five races at the track, finishing 6th in 2014 and no higher than 18th in his other four races, but the past couple of weeks, he’s shown determination that not many other drivers have had.

It’s been a about two years since Larson started running full-time in the Cup Series and he’s gotten close to winning races before, but he’s never been closer than he is right now. At Dover, he led 85 laps and looked to finally be closing in on his win, but he never could get past Matt Kenseth and finished second.

Proud of everyone @CGRnascar. Guys are building faster race cars as of late. So nice to see the hard work paying off. We're getting closer!
— Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) May 15, 2016

Last weekend, he won a thrilling duel with Chase Elliott in the Sprint Showdown and earned a spot in the All-Star race, where he led 18 laps before being passed late and slamming into the wall.

More racing: Power Rankings Heading Into Charlotte

Larson looks to finally have the momentum and drive that he needs to get to Victory Lane, and with the history of other drivers getting their first win in the Coca-Cola 600, he will be a big threat to steal a win and earn a Chase spot this Sunday night.

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