How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory

From villain to hero, Kyle Larson had to reach his lifelong goal the hard way and go through a very public shaming after a ban for using a racial slur, but his talents shone long before his name grabbed the headlines...

Redemption and resurrection – Kyle Larson’s NASCAR Cup title success at Phoenix on Sunday continues Hendrick Motorsports’ own comeback story as well as his personal narrative after being banned from the sport just over 18 months ago.

While Larson was in the wilderness, not knowing if he’d ever race at the top level in stock cars again, never mind win a title, Hendrick was knuckling down to get its own house in order.

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Author Charles Bradley

Charles Bradley is Chief Editor of Autosport US. After spending five years in the aerospace industry in his native North Wales, while working weekends as a freelance writer at racetracks around the UK, Charles joined the staff of Motoring News in the heart of London. He transferred to the nascent Autosport.com team in 2000 before transitioning to the magazine, becoming its Editor between 2011 and 2014. Charles then upped sticks to work in America, as Motorsport.com’s Editor in Chief, where he created the multi-national and multi-lingual editorial team that quickly became the world’s most-read motorsport website. He was instrumental in delivering three of the biggest Global F1 Fan Surveys in sports history and is also a multiple award-winning scriptwriter. Charles is an overseas member of the Guild of Motoring Writers and lives in Miami Beach with his wife Helen – and a cat that’s named after Serbia’s top football club.