Fans are upset after watching Kyle Larson cruise to an easy win at Kansas Speedway in the NASCAR’s 2025 AdventHealth 400. What should have been an exciting race turned into a one-man show with Larson leading a whopping 221 of 267 laps.
He started on pole, won both stages and never really faced a challenge. While Larson celebrated passing 10,000 career laps led and taking the points lead, many NASCAR fans weren’t in the mood to celebrate with him.
NASCAR’s Next Gen Car Gets Blamed for Boring Kansas Race
Last year, this same track gave us NASCAR’s closest finish ever when Larson beat Chris Buescher by just .001 seconds. This year? Not even close. The half empty grandstands told the story, fans just weren’t showing up like they used to.
Most of the anger online was aimed at NASCAR’s Next Gen car. It was supposed to make racing more competitive and exciting but many fans think it’s doing the opposite especially at tracks like Kansas that used to be known for great racing.
“Boring. Just boring a** racing. If it wasn’t for restarts, literally nothing would have happened on the track,” one fan named @Dude_Squonk wrote online.
Boring. Just boring ass racing. If it wasn’t for restarts, literally nothing would have happened on the track.
— Squonk’s Tears (@Dude_Squonk) May 11, 2025
Another fan, @Megafrayder2, didn’t hold back: “Kansas Speedway, the track that had developed a reputation for being one of the absolute best in the current era, has now succumbed to the Next Gen failure.”
“Dominates with a 10th place car. It’s sad what NASCAR has become,” complained @jakovasaurus31.
Dominates with a 10th place car. It’s sad what NASCAR has become.
— Sam Nieto (@jakovasaurus31) May 11, 2025
One particularly upset fan, @Twister32733092, went all in: “This is officially the worst nascar season of all time and I am not watching the cup series anymore until they fix this shithole of a car.”
This is officially the worst nascar season of all time and I am not watching the cup series anymore until they fix this shithole of a car.
— Lukas (@Twister32733092) May 11, 2025
While some drivers like Ryan Blaney have stuck up for the Next Gen car by pointing to good races at other tracks and Alex Bowman said the Kansas race wasn’t boring, most fans clearly disagree.
As one fan summed it up: “That was awful. This season is one of the worst ever. NASCAR had a chance to make it interesting and throw the caution for Hocevar but didn’t for whatever reason.”
That was awful. This season is one of the worst ever. NASCAR had a chance to make it interesting and throw the caution for Hocevar but didn’t for whatever reason.
— Drew (@downitdrew) May 11, 2025
NASCAR now faces a real problem. Fans don’t tune in to watch one driver lead almost the entire race. They want close battles, surprise moments and nail biting finishes. What happened at Kansas wasn’t just a boring race – it was a warning sign that NASCAR might be losing what made it exciting in the first place.