Earnhardt: Kyle Larson will be "the best driver out on the track"

From the fall of 2001 through the fall of 2004, Earnhardt won at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway five times, including four in a row at one point, all while competing at Dale Earnhardt Inc.

While Earnhardt’s fans saw a driver learning the intricacies of restrictor-plate racing, others cast aspersions on his team’s work.

“It’s not a lot of fun. You want to get credit as a driver for being fast and good,” Earnhardt said this week at an appearance at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

He sees the same thing developing with the sudden emergence of Kyle Larson into a regular contender for race wins and even a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship.

Giving credit where credit is due

Some of the comments regarding Larson and his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team come from its quick ascension into a championship-contending team and the penalties Larson’s team has accumulated this season, during qualifying and after races.

“I don’t think that anybody can disagree that Kyle is very talented and very fast. But anytime you go out there and do something really good, you hear people kind of questioning whether there are some shenanigans going on, as a driver that really ticks you off,” Earnhardt said.

“It’s basically not giving credit where credits due in your mind. The team and the driver in your mind is why you’re fast, not because the car is rigged in some way.”

And even if Larson’s team is attempting to stretch the rulebook, good for them Earnhardt says.

“All the teams are really aggressive. Everybody pushes really hard against the rulebook and some teams are very clever,” he said. “Even if his car isn’t right, I find you have to admire the ingenuity and engineering that goes into finding that kind of speed.

“I can’t deny that I wouldn’t love to have that speed, no matter how you get it. As a driver, it ticks you off when people don’t credit you. They say, ‘There must be something going on with the car.’ That’s the way he probably feels – he probably feels slighted.”

This is only the beginning

Earnhardt, who retire from full-time competition at the end of the 2017 season, believes the accolades are just beginning for Larson.

“I don’t believe there’s a driver that’s three-tenths (of a second) better than anybody else but I think there will be years in his career where he is considered one of the best drivers on the track,” Earnhardt said.

“He’s really, really good. Kyle (Busch) is going to lay claim to that title of being the best driver out on the track and Jimmie (Johnson) also, but I think Larson is right up in that conversation. “You have to look at the team he’s with – that team has been struggling for a while. They’ve played second fiddle to Hendrick and Gibbs at times. Now they’re not. I think he’s been a huge part of their success.

“It’s amazing when a driver can do that. Kurt Busch is the kind of driver that can do that – get in cars and take the team to the next level. Usually the drivers aren’t responsible for that. Kyle Larson is that kind of driver.”