As Cannon McIntosh climbed to the top of his roll cage after besting the field at Missouri’s Sweet Springs Motorsports Complex, you could sense his relief.
As Cannon McIntosh climbed to the top of his roll cage after besting the field at Missouri‘s Sweet Springs Motorsports Complex, you could sense his relief.
It had been 18 months since he shocked the USAC National Midget Series regulars by taking the checkered flag indoors at DuQuoin, Ill.
Getting victory two proved to be a bit harder.
There is no getting around it; when you sign on with Keith Kunz Motorsports, wins – if not championships – are expected. It turned out that there was plenty of relief to be spread around on a beautiful evening in the Show Me State.
At that point, it had been more than a full calendar year since a Keith Kunz-owned car had pulled into victory lane in a USAC national event.
Let that last sentence sink in a bit. We‘re talking Keith Kunz. Remember him? He‘s the guy who, according to some, was ruining midget racing.
Sure, there are many explanations for his team‘s drought. He came into the 2020 season with his youngest lineup in years, and he didn‘t have a regular veteran presence who could demonstrate by word and deed how one goes about the business of winning.
I‘ll give people that, but that rationale also runs the risk of diminishing the accomplishments of those teams that beat him.
It‘s funny, but for all those who talked about the deleterious impact of Keith Kunz on the health of midget racing, very little of that verbiage actually came from his competitors.
The specific question had been posed time and time again and, in the end, those who have a real desire to be great always answered the same way.
Their response? We have to get better. So, in the end, that is exactly what they did.
Walk around a USAC midget pit area and you see professional race teams that have ample resources at their disposal. We can argue the merits of the midget racing arms race until the sun goes down. I understand that.
However, in a bottom line business, if one dips a toe in that swimming hole, they should clearly understand what they are getting into. It is the major league of midget racing.
What Keith had gone through over the past year is not unusual in motorsports. If you look at IndyCar or NASCAR, the same phenomenon has played out time and time again.
Roger Penske, Chip Ganassi, and Michael Andretti have all faced lean years where nothing seemed to go right. In fact, a quarter-century ago Penske‘s cars failed to crack the starting field at the Indianapolis 500.
Just change the names and the story is the same in the stock car world.
In the face of such disappointment, some roll up their sleeves and get better, others complain, and some even quit. When you think about it for just a moment, this same dynamic is played out on the individual level.
It was a conversation with an influential person in midget racing circles that led to this column. As I reflected on our discussion, it dawned on me that a whole bunch of people in short track, open-wheel racing were sharing a similar thought.
What my source said that made my ears perk up was offered in a matter-of-fact fashion. Thinking about what we had witnessed during Indiana Midget Week, he opined that some drivers suddenly were working harder because “Kyle Larson embarrassed them.”
Wow. I had never thought of it in those terms. Embarrassed. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense.
Racers have fully-developed egos. It’s almost a necessity to be successful. You don‘t end up a frontrunner in USAC, the All Stars, and the World of Outlaws without being a winner.
You can get there with a bag of money and the right equipment. That‘s undeniable. Nonetheless, to have staying power, and to get to the top, you have to produce.
This year, many drivers who were used to standing in front of a cheering crowd were getting weary of watching Larson‘s summer of celebration firsthand.
There have been plenty of words devoted to Kyle Larson of late. I found myself watching streamed events night after night primarily to see if he could somehow continue his amazing run.
One could argue that he was a source of salvation in a virus-ravaged season and, in particular, that time when much of the country was still on lockdown.
Like any athlete who goes through a period of near invincibility, he was clearly in the zone.
There is no denying that Larson is a rare talent. What he did on the way to NASCAR is nearly legendary. On this current streak he has also slayed a few dragons.
In 2014, I had the opportunity to interview Kyle in victory lane at Sonoma Raceway. He had just whipped his NASCAR K&N Pro Series peers on a tricky road course and was beaming with pride. Amazed at what I witnessed, I asked him if there was anything he couldn‘t do.
Without missing a beat, he said, “Win a sprint car race in Pennsylvania.”
I understand that response was reported in the Keystone State that very evening. I guess we all figured out, thanks to this year, that he can do that now too.
This is all well and good but, in the end, if someone has been embarrassed by having their hat handed to them by Larson and Paul Silva night after night, how are they going to respond? What is it that they can do as an individual and as a team to up their game and get better? The greatest hindrance to future success is current success.
In the case of the USAC midgets, my informant suggested that Larson had forced a few high-profile drivers to sit up in the seat, get their elbows up, and bear down even harder.
That‘s how championship teams and drivers respond.
We have all been offered a rare treat in this crazy 2020 season. The chance to watch someone at the top of their profession perform at a peak level is something to savor. As fun as this has been, it actually makes the 2021 season even more intriguing.
Make no mistake about it, Kyle Larson has raised the bar. The question becomes, who is prepared to meet the challenge? Sometimes teams and drivers think they are working as hard as they can, when in fact more can be derived in the shop, or even the gym.
Somebody is going to be willing to put in the needed work. That you can count on.