Kyle Larson, NASCAR defending champion, gets stuck in grass at Chicagoland

The hits just keep coming for Kyle Larson, the defending NASCAR Cup Series champion.

Larson spun out on Lap 94 coming out of turn 4 on his own at the NASCAR Chicagoland race on July 5 in the eero 400. Larson came down to the infield of the frontstretch, stopping in the grass.

The only problem? With all the rain that as slammed the Chicago area this weekend, Larson got stuck in the grass and mud with flat tires.

Larson had to be pulled out of the grass, then pushed to his pit stop. That left him two laps down in a race many expected him to contend for the win, giving his history at the track. Larson was running third at the time of the spin out.

OH NO!

Larson spins while running third. pic.twitter.com/f094cgZPQU

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 5, 2026

NASCAR returned to Chicagoland Speedway this season for the first time in seven years. Larson put his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on the front row, next to polesitter Denny Hamlin. He entered the race fifth in points, 148 points behind leader Denny Hamlin. He has a 42-race winless streak.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Kyle Larson, NASCAR defending champion, gets stuck in grass at Chicagoland