NASCAR: Future Stars Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott Share One Key Strength

By Asher Fair | Jun 28, 2017

Mar 13, 2016; Avondale, AZ, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Larson leads Chase Elliott during the Good Sam 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

When the torch is passed from Jimmie Johnson to the stars of the next generation, it will likely end up in the hands of Kyle Larson and/or Chase Elliott. Already, those two drivers share one key strength.

Whether or not the torch has already been passed to the younger driver from the older, more experienced drivers is up for debate. But the fact that it is even debatable means that if the torch has yet to be passed, it will be passed sometime in NASCAR’s near future.

The two primary drivers set up to become the next stars of NASCAR are undoubtedly Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing and Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports. Larson, 24, began racing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2014 at age 21, and Elliott, 21, began racing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series last season at age 20.

Larson’s career started off somewhat slowly, finishing in 17th and 19th place, respectively, in the championship standings in his first two seasons and failing to make the playoffs both years. Last season, however, he won his first career race, qualified for the playoffs and finished in a career-high 9th in the standings. Right now, Larson is tied for 2nd in the sport with two victories through 16 races so far this season and he is the leader of the championship standings as well.

More from NASCAR

Elliott, however, had a quicker start to his career than Larson did. He took pole for his first career Daytona 500 and went on to finish in 10th place in the championship standings after qualifying for the playoffs in his rookie season. However, through career 57 starts, he has yet to win a single race and currently sits five spots behind Larson in the standings in 6th place.

The future certainly looks bright for both young, talented drivers, as they do look like they will be future stars of the sport. But how long will it take until these drivers really start winning championships? It may very well be soon, possibly as early as this year, but it may also be longer than you think.

Larson has three victories in his 127-race NASCAR career, and Elliott’s career-high finish during his 57-race NASCAR career is 2nd place, which has happened on three occasions. While Larson has won and Elliott has not, their career-high finishes, all six of them combined, actually have something in common.

All six of the career-high finishes for Larson and Elliott have come on one of the two 2-mile ovals that NASCAR travels to each season, with five of the six coming at Michigan. NASCAR heads to Fontana once per season and Michigan twice per season. Larson has one victory at Fontana and two at Michigan, and all three of Elliott’s 2nd place finishes have come in his three races at Michigan, with two of them actually being finishes right behind Larson.

If not for 2-mile ovals, Larson would have no wins through 116 races so far in his NASCAR career, and Elliott would never have finished higher than 3rd place in 52 races. And even with several changes coming to NASCAR’s schedule, there are still no 2-mile ovals in the playoffs. So while Larson and Elliott appear to be locks for the playoffs for at least the next decade, and that’s without exaggerating, they both still have work left to do.

While driving on 2-mile ovals is a common strength shared by these two future stars of the sport, the fact remains that they will both need to improve on other types of tracks in order to become legitimate championship contenders. But who knows? Maybe they will both get better as early as this season and contend for this year’s championship in November. Then again, maybe it will be a few seasons until they are ready to truly contend with the established stars of the sport.

Next: Chase Elliott: The Hunt For Career Win #1

Do you believe that Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott will be able to improve and win on all types of tracks in the near future? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to follow me on Instagram as well as Beyond the Flag on both Instagram and Twitter. Finally, don’t forget to follow along with Beyond the Flag for the latest news, opinions and analysis stemming from a number of different motorsports series. You don’t want to miss any of it.