Kyle Larson’s Admission Sparks Fan Backlash Against Rick Hendrick & NASCAR Over ‘Vanilla’ Next-Gen Driver

Apart from Ross Chastain, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, and Carson Hocevar, it is hard to find NASCAR drivers who are willing to express themselves. It’s not just about speaking against the governing body or being involved in a brawl after the race. This has more to do with their personality, the real human behind the helmet, and that is what attracts fans towards a sport. Not long ago, we had the likes of Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, and Kurt Busch go all out on the racetrack.

There’s Tony Stewart’s infamous helmet throw at Bristol against Matt Kenseth from 2012. Harvick sparked the brawl at Texas between Jeff Gordon and Brad Keselowski, and then there are Kurt Busch’s radio rants, which still entertain the fans after all these years. Yet, in the modern era, we have somewhat muted and reserved personalities branded as NASCAR’s most popular driver. Kyle Larson was more or less the same, but something’s changed within him this year, and this was evident after his win at Bristol.

“If Denny is in front of me, it could be a totally different story and be really hard to pass him, but glad to stop his three-peat. We hate to see him win, as I’m sure you guys do, too.” He said at the start-finish line, and the grandstands erupted in his support. He is done acting like a good guy, and his visit to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Indy 500 has further solidified this stance. Surprisingly, he even called out his teammates at Hendrick Motorsports for being reserved and unexpressive.

Drawing a comparison between the IndyCar drivers and NASCAR drivers, the driver of the No. 5 HMS Chevy stated, “I feel like most of the IndyCar garage though has got good personalities. We’re all pretty vanilla at Hendrick.” This was his response when asked about Pato O’Ward’s exciting personality. Well, this trend at HMS isn’t new, even Dale Earnhardt Jr. confessed about being clean and not overstepping, representing Mr. H’s organization. “I felt like I needed to clean up a bit… There were more expectations and more eyes on me.”

O’Ward, meanwhile, has emerged as a pop star for the fans in the IndyCar Series. From giving away 300-plus tickets to signing autographs for fans lined up as long as two kilometers, the Mexican driver is an attention-grabber apart from his racing talents. He also didn’t hesitate to express his emotions against IndyCar for failing to get a race in Mexico after NASCAR sealed the deal. “I strongly believe that we’re not only late, but I strongly believe that there isn’t more room in Mexico City. Like, not only did they beat us there, but now that is not an option for IndyCar.”

In response to a @jennafryer question about Pato O’Ward’s exciting personality, Kyle Larson says “We’re all pretty vanilla at Hendrick.”

He adds: “I feel like most of the IndyCar garage though has got good personalities. We need more guys like Pato in NASCAR.”

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) May 23, 2025

Now that Larson has opened up on how things are different at HMS and NASCAR, fans couldn’t help but highlight why the sport is on the decline. The winningest team in NASCAR is supposed to grow the sport, right? But they are groomed into the HMS style of doing things. Although there’s no arguing their success on the racetrack, there’s more to racing than just winning. And fans argued the same while reacting to Larson’s comments.

NASCAR fans demand originality from the drivers representing the sport

One fan gave a long explanation on Reddit, stating that NASCAR is at fault in ruining the drivers’ personalities and, in effect, also ruining their own image. “I would like to make a point that this is partially on NASCAR’s fault for why we have drivers like this. Don’t forget we are only a ~decade or so removed from secret fines for criticizing the sport. Pato especially haa been very critical the direction Indycar is taking and all the recent Penske is taking. When you limit what the drivers have to say, they’re going to say less and show less,” wrote the fan. We all saw how mute everyone was last year, when William Byron sealed a spot in the championship race after Chevy drivers manipulated the outcome of the race. Christopher Bell was the lone voice, but with his wall ride, his argument fell on deaf ears.

It’s not just NASCAR, but fans have also seen similar incidents in other sports like Formula 1, and the more regulations are imposed on the drivers, the more it is evident that the sport has started becoming extensively scripted. One fan wrote, “With the recent FIA speech clampdowns, its very possible new drivers will become more vanilla to prevent backlash from higher-ups. Obviously the other thing is F1 drivers are required to do much more media, so naturally they’ll show more of themselves, but everything points to F1 making similar mistakes NASCAR did in the 2000s.” This is similar to having their accounts on insights whitewashed to suit the needs of others, making the sport much less reliable and relatable.

Some fans even sparked speculations, stating that Larson’s comments were aimed at Alex Bowman, “Typical Bowman experience.” And this banter didn’t end here. We know that Chase Elliott has been consistently winning the popular driver award. But, he is more reserved than all the HMS drivers, inactive on social media, and pretty much stays out of controversies for the most part. Now, he is not obliged to act like Hamlin or Chastain, but he can surely make the sport more inviting with the influence he holds. “Chase Elliot has entered the chat,” another fan commented.

Some identified another major factor that has led to a decline in drivers expressing themselves. One fan wrote explicitly about the duality of the NASCAR fanbase, saying, “NASCAR fans – we need more personalities in NASCAR!” Most Popular Driver in NASCAR – low key, mild mannered. When a NASCAR driver has a big personality – “I hate that guy!” This is true to some extent. Look at the flak Ross Chastain received when he tried to go up against the big dogs, especially the HMS driver. Then something similar happened with Carson Hocevar for his antics at Atlanta. Perhaps fans need to give these drivers some space and avoid trashing them on social media.

What are your thoughts on Larson’s comments, and do you think the lack of personality is restricting the growth of NASCAR?

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