“Get up there… Put your money where your mouth is.” Kyle Busch’s words to his son may make sense in the Busch family, but maybe not so much in the Larson household. The two-time Cup Series champion believes this kind of tough love is important for Brexton Busch. His father, Tom, followed the same approach and produced two Cup Series champions, Kurt and Kyle. Yet, no matter how beneficial it may be, Kyle Larson may not be ready for the same method to groom his own son.
During a recently concluded ‘Battle of the Buschs’, a 600 Winged Micro race at Millbridge Speedway, Kyle Busch bested his son. The Micro Sprint event saw Brexton Busch hounding his father all the way – yet his more experienced dad eventually beat him. This event prompted questions about Kyle Larson and his son, Owen Larson. But the Hendrick Motorsports driver is not interested at the moment.
Kyle Larson wishes for no ‘Larson Clash’
Well, it is not like Owen Larson is no stranger to racing. The 10-year-old fetched his career’s first victory in the “Beginner Box Stock” division at Millbridge Speedway. “I’m just proud of him,” his dad said then. Kyle Larson’s little one also took his very first sprint race’s checkered flag at Coles County Speedway last year in June. What is more? He competed at par with Brexton Busch at the 2025 Tulsa Shootout, clinching a win in FuelTech Race 138. So his father is aptly aware of his racing talents. But while Kyle Busch embarked on the ‘Busch Clash’ recently in Millbridge, Larson has no wish to set off a ‘Larson Clash.’
Kyle Larson appeared in a presser head of the Cup Series race in Martinsville Speedway. Besides broaching his own racing career, the 30-time Cup race winner talked about his son, Owen. The media was interested to know if he would race his son Owen any time soon, as Kyle Busch did. However, Larson dropped an overall negative reaction.
Larson told Frontstretch: “I’m sure it will happen eventually, but it’s not really on the radar yet. I’m sure it could happen next year or something. Don’t race Micros a lot as Kyle does. The more of the stuff I run is in the bigger cars. I think it’ll probably happen in a Micro, but I’m not racing those every week like he is. But I’m sure it will happen more often once he starts racing Sprint Cars.” Kyle Larson has his fair share of sprint and dirt racing. Earlier this year, he won the Chili Bowl Nationals main event and then stole the show at an Australian race in Perth Motorplex. However, his lesser involvement in Micro Sprints remains a major factor for not racing his son.
.@KyleLarsonRacin discusses rain tires on ovals vs. road courses.
He also comments on if he’d ever race against his son Owen Larson.
@TreyLyleVT #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/dGgtSp9MJl
— Frontstretch (@Frontstretch) March 29, 2025
Owen Larson (10) and Brexton Busch (9) are almost the same age, growing up together in the racing world. Yet their fathers’ approaches are different. While Kyle Busch wants to hone his son’s racing skills, Kyle Larson wishes to see his son grow more flexibly. Busch already has his future planned out with his son, stating after their first race against each other, “I always said he would run the short tracks and I would run the big tracks and when he was old enough, he would take over,” referencing his statement from 2023 to retire from the Cup series when Brexton turns 15 to eventually share a Truck ride.
This family love may be more heart-warming than any race competition. However, the same was also visible ahead of the ‘Busch Clash’ as Brexton Busch’s mom was very worried.
Increased heart rate ahead of the race
No matter how talented a racing family can be, there is always a risk. NASCAR is famous for its wild accidents wrought by heavy stock cars zooming around at 200 MPH. Kyle Busch himself has faced several such mishaps in his career. For example, Rowdy broke his leg during the 2015 Daytona 500 and had to sit out indefinitely for several races – although he went on to win the championship that year! So his wife, Samantha Busch, had the same concern for her son Brexton as he faced his dad at Millbridge Speedway. She said, “I just don’t want them to wreck each other.”
Brexton Busch has several laurels in his cabinet already. Those range from competing in a jam-packed 150-race schedule in 2024 to capturing his first Golden Driller trophy in Tulsa. However, facing his dad would always be an ordeal – Kyle Busch is a 232-time NASCAR National Series race winner. So Samantha was worried about the pressure that Brexton may face.
“I thought this would be really cool, but there are also a lot of nerves. I’m personally worried that Brexton…you’re racing your dad—a two-time Cup champion. That’s a lot of pressure for a nine-year-old,” Samantha added. But eventually, Brexton Busch gave a solid fight. He was at his father’s tail end constantly. In the end, Kyle Busch finished 3rd, and his son ended up 6th.
While the Busch family shares its wins and heartbreaks on the racetrack, the Larsons wish to take a balanced approach. Kyle Larson wants to be more flexible with his son, which may also be an effective path to a successful career. Do you think Larson will get in a micro and race his son in 2026? Let us know in the comments!
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