LAS VEGAS — There’s a tradition at Hendrick Motorsports to ring the winning bell throughout the North Carolina shop after every NASCAR victory.
As motivation to have the best year of his career, Kyle Larson’s team decided to bring a bell on the road to avoid having to wait to return to Charlotte to celebrate every achievement he plans for this season.
The bell got its first ring Sunday when Larson won his second consecutive race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to keep Chevrolet undefeated and give Rick Hendrick his second victory in the first three NASCAR Cup Series races of the season.
Hendrick Motorsports is celebrating its 40th anniversary this season and opened the year with William Byron winning the Daytona 500.
“That bell will travel with us every week and we’ll be ringing it loud and proud,” Larson said.
Larson won for the third time in his career at Las Vegas, where in 2021 he got his first win driving for Hendrick following a nearly yearlong suspension in 2020. Larson also won in the No. 5 Chevy at Las Vegas last October in the playoffs.
Larson held off Tyler Reddick for his 24th career Cup victory. In a Toyota for 23XI Racing, Reddick chased Larson for the final several laps but could never find enough room to make a move for the pass. Larson’s margin of victory was 0.441 seconds over Reddick.
“I knew Tyler was going to be the guy to beat from the first stage” Larson said. “He was really fast there. Cool to get a win here at Vegas again. Back-to-back, swept all the stages again. Can’t ask for more than that.”
Reddick was extremely frustrated after finishing second and believed Larson as the leader controlled the race because of the rules of NASCAR’s new car.
“Kyle did a really good job there taking away pretty much every option I had there to close the gap,” Reddick said. “Second sucks, that is for sure. You have to run up front all day long, and when asked about what we need to do to get better, that’s the very thing, and we didn’t do it. We were pretty evenly matched, so I don’t know if there was anything that I really could’ve done to get around him.
“He would have had to make a big mistake or had some traffic kind of knock his wind around. It’s a solid effort for our team, that’s how we need to run, but I don’t like running second.”
Chevrolet also has wins this year by Byron in the Daytona 500 and Daniel Suarez last week at Atlanta for Trackhouse Racing. Chevrolet has won eight of nine national series races to open the year.
Ford and Toyota are both using new cars this year.
The Chevrolet contingent right now is as tight as it’s ever been, and the key partner groups and even outside of that are working really good together because we know we have very little margin here,” Hendrick team president and general manager Jeff Andrews said. “We know we’re up against a new car with Ford and Toyota. We have to do our best to work together and keep advancing this car.
“We’re obviously early on in the season here, a lot of racing to go, and they will get there. Anytime that you change a platform on those cars as much as they’ve had, it’s going to take a little bit of time.”
Reigning NASCAR champion Ryan Blaney was third for Team Penske in a Ford, followed by Trackhouse driver Ross Chastain, Ty Gibbs in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing and Las Vegas native Noah Gragson in his best finish since joining Stewart-Haas Racing.
Martin Truex Jr. for JGR was seventh, followed by teammate Denny Hamlin, Penske driver and pole-sitter Joey Logano and Byron. Suarez, last week’s winner, was 11th.
Larson swept all three stages and led 181 of the 267 laps. The win made Larson the Cup Series points leader with an eight-point cushion over Blaney.
BUESCHER PENALTY TO COME
Chris Buescher and RFK Racing are facing penalties after a tire fell off Buescher’s Ford early in the race.
“We lost the nut and lost half the wheel,” Buescher said. “I think the tire stayed up under the fender. It looks like the nut came off and something in the suspension actually cut the wheel in half.”
The penalty will be the suspension of two crew members from Buescher’s team for the next two races.
DRIVE FOR DIVERSITY SUCCESS
Larson’s win continued a streak of success for graduates of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program.
It started when Nick Sanchez won the Truck Series race to open the season at Daytona, and then Suarez won the Cup Series race last week at Atlanta.
“The D4D program was good for my career. Kind of gave me my introduction into stock car racing and gained a lot of experience, not only on the racetrack but off of it, as well,” Larson said. “I’m sure it’s changed quite a bit since 2012, but regardless, they’ve produced some great drivers, and it’s cool to see.
“Hopefully, we can add some more D4D guys on to the new championship list down the road.”
UP NEXT
NASCAR goes to Phoenix Raceway, where Byron is the defending race winner. Chastain won in November on the day Blaney won his first Cup title.
Ovechkin also passed Gordie Howe for the most regular-season goals scored at a single venue in NHL history with his 442nd goal at Capital One Arena.
Matt Roy also scored for the Capitals, who ended a two-game losing skid to gain some traction in the standings.
Anze Kopitar scored for lone goal for the Kings, who had won four straight. It was just their second regulation road loss of the season.
Washington, which has been struggling to finish at 5-on-5, opened the scoring early, as Roy got to the front of the net and tipped Aliaksei Protas‘ point shot past Darcy Kuemper. It was Roy’s first goal in 25 games, dating to last season.
In the second period, Ovechkin crashed the crease and got to the front of the net before burying a behind-the-net feed from Connor McMichael. Ovechkin now has goals in back-to-back games and three of his past four.
Kopitar pulled Los Angeles to within one with his third goal of the season with 6:33 left in the second. He tapped in a backdoor feed from Corey Perry on a power play. Washington has now given up a power-play goal in three straight games and five of the past six.
Despite a rally, the Kings couldn’t beat Charlie Lindgren, who stopped 30 of 31 shots for his second win of the season after losing his previous four starts.
The Los Angeles Kings have signed winger Adrian Kempe to a new eight-year contract worth $10.625 million annually, the team announced Monday.
The Kings viewed it as a priority to re-sign Kempe, especially as they prepare for captain Anze Kopitar to retire at the end of the season. The sides had been negotiating over the past few months, and Kempe, sources said, took a little less money, indicating his desire to stay in Los Angeles, where he believes he can win a Stanley Cup.
The contract runs through the 2033-34 season. The 29-year-old Kempe, a native of Sweden, has played his entire 10-year career with the Kings after being drafted in the first round in 2014.
Kempe, the Kings’ leading scorer in each of the past two seasons, has six goals and 19 points through 19 games this season.
He was arguably the biggest free agent remaining for the summer of 2026. Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Kirill Kaprizov and Martin Necas all re-signed with their respective teams over the past two months.
Zdeno Chara is often remembered for how he stood out on the ice.
Over a 24-year career, the Slovak-born defenseman was the tallest player in NHL history at 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds. He boasted the hardest shot the league had ever seen (108.8 miles per hour, recorded at the 2012 NHL All-Star Game) and his longevity is hard to comprehend. When Chara retired at age 45, he had played in 1,680 regular-season games, the most ever for an NHL defenseman.
In his 14 seasons with the Boston Bruins (all as a captain) Chara became the second European captain to win the Stanley Cup, while ushering in a new era of excellence in Boston. The polyglot who speaks seven languages set the standard with his relentless work ethic and mentality of doing whatever it takes for the team — all while instilling the values of respect.
Earlier this month, Chara was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame — the culmination of an unlikely yet impressive journey.
“Growing up in a small town in Slovakia, Trencin, you don’t dream about nights like this,” Chara said in his induction speech. “You dream about a patch of ice that doesn’t melt before we finish practice. You dream about finding a stick that’s not broken or skates that can still fit for a couple of years.”
Three years removed from the game, Chara’s pursuit of excellence hasn’t stopped. He crushed his first Ironman triathlon in August in less than five hours — upping the ante from his nine completed marathons in a 15-month span. After taking business courses at Harvard University, Chara is entering the world of entrepreneurship, and soon will launch his first app called Castable. And he has remained close to the game, taking an advisory role with the Bruins beginning last season.
ESPN recently caught up with Chara, who opened up about his life and goals outside of the rink.
Post retirement, you took an advisory role with the Bruins. You’re also exploring entrepreneurship, and you’ve competed in several marathons and Ironmans. Why do you continue to push yourself?
Chara: I think it’s a really cool thing. As much as you can think, “I don’t need to do this, I’m all set. I had a good successful career,” you know what? I’m more the guy that says, “Hey, why not? I’m going to try this. I’m going to learn a ton.” And the learning that’s priceless. So I’m investing the time and energy and obviously some money into it. But in return I’m gaining something amazing, an unbelievable experience by learning about myself, about others, about business, about the world.
As for hockey, the game is constantly evolving. It’s always going to keep going forward and there’s going to be some adjustment. The main thing is: I love watching the game and I love being part of it. I’m so happy I’m being included in the Boston Bruins organization in a mentorship, advisory role with hockey operations. And that’s also a cool and new thing for me where I offer my experience in my mentorship, my smarts that I gained over a 25 year career.
When people consider the career of Zdeno Chara, what do you want to be remembered for most?
Chara: Well, I always say the stats, the records, the games played, the hardest shot, all that stuff: I’m super grateful and I’m humble about it. But the biggest thing is what kind of impact you have on others. I took a huge amount of pride to build something and create something in the organization, and leave something behind. I’m most proud that we were able to build that culture between 2008 and 2014-15 where we were very, very strong. We were contenders and that culture, that legacy was one of the best, if not the best in the league.
You were known for setting a great culture as a captain, and that was passed down to Patrice Bergeron and then Brad Marchand. The Bruins don’t currently have a captain; do you see your guys’ legacy still living within the team?
Chara: I mean that’s the ultimate goal, to be passing on that leadership and the legacy to younger generations. And I think looking back, I think we created something very special in those years where we were winning, ultimately the Stanley Cup, and then we carried it out for a long period of time. Everything has its own runway, and when I left and then Patrice left, Brad Marchand left, yeah, there’s a little bit of gap. But it takes time, it takes learning. And that’s why one of my roles is to come in and try to help these players to become better leaders and better mentors for their younger teammates. So it just takes patience and takes time.
What do you tell those young players about leadership?
Chara: Well, it starts with themselves first, foremost. You can’t be expecting to lead or follow if you don’t commit to certain things. And it starts with self discipline and commitment. You’ve got to be willing to put the work and time into it. You have to find the purpose behind everything you do and everything has to be within team goals, and you have to be willing to accept those responsibilities and accountabilities.
Watching this Bruins season so far, what has surprised you the most?
Chara: I wouldn’t say anything really surprised me. I mean, we had a pretty good start and there was a little bit of a setback if you want to call that, but we bounced back and now we are playing very strong, good hockey, and so we just got to continue to keep going forward and keep improving. Every game is a hard game. There are no easy games in the National Hockey League. Consistency is the biggest thing.
There have been very few European-born coaches in NHL history. Marco Sturm of Germany is now one of them. What is different about what he brings to the Bruins?
Chara: Well, I think he brings positive energy, and he brings the right mindset with his structure and system. He is a great human being. He cares about his players. He wants to win. He has great attention to details. He’s a hardworking coach. He’s their first guy in the office, last guy to leave. So he’s very, very disciplined and driven. You have a coach who is very motivated and inspired to bring the winning culture and championship back.
You were always really close with Patrice Bergeron. What is your relationship like today?
Chara: We are best friends. That’s something that carried over our careers into our personal lives. I can always rely on Patrice to be in touch weekly. He’s an amazing human being and couldn’t ask for a better friend to have. He is very caring, such a great family man. Anytime we have time to get together, we get lunch or dinner. Then we enjoy our re-groups after a few days, and we always touch on our lives and it’s great. I love the guy.
You’re now launching an app called Castable. How would you describe it?
Chara: This idea was created about three years ago. I met my co-founder, Peter Gladstone, at the Harvard Innovation Labs (i-Labs), and I was seeking some sort of hands-on experience to learn more about entrepreneurship, the business side of things. And he said, “Hey, look, I have an idea I’m brainstorming around. I want to create a platform that would be focusing on people connecting with celebrities or talented people. And they wouldn’t have to chase them, literally it will be easy to get together through a sporting or live event.”
So it’s an audio-first platform for broadcasting and commentary, but much more accessible — where celebrities or talented people will provide real time commentary during events or sports events and bring fans closer to those moments that they care about most.
We found that the majority of people, maybe over 80% of people watch sporting events alone. So we want to create something where these people are not alone, but connected not just with their friends and the other group of listeners, but also their favorite people. So imagine: the ManningCast, in real time, and it will be accessible to many, many people.
How do you envision it applying to hockey?
Chara: Imagine you have a hockey game going on, and I could be one of the casters. It’s not required for me to do the play-by-play commentary, but more focused on storytelling or anything that comes up. I could be giving fans some inside information or insight from me growing up. The fans have the privilege of sending me text messages through this application and asking me questions. I can be scrolling down while I’m talking and looking at some comments and choosing which ones I want to answer, which ones I want to let go. It will be entertaining for fans, and I think this is a great chance to also show your persona, show your authenticity and have fun. But it doesn’t have to be that I have to do a hockey game. I can do any type of event, like TV, movies or concerts, or any type of sport. I can watch basketball, golf, tennis, and I can bring guests, I can bring people that are my friends and we can cast.
What have you learned in the business world?
Chara: I think the biggest thing is to listen. I think that you’ve got to be open to always have your eyes ears open and try to learn how things are being developed takes a lot of patience. There’s a lot of smart people. The biggest thing is a willingness to learn, willingness to surround yourself with smarter people than you are and create a team that is diversified. I think it helps when you take some courses. I took a whole bunch of courses at the Harvard Business School, some MIT courses.
And then I think you also have to understand that most of the startups fail; obviously things that can come up. In general, you just got to be willing to grind and keep working at it and never give up and just go after your dream
Your athletic achievements following retirement include several marathons and Ironmans. Are there any other athletic goals you have?
Chara: People ask me all the time, what’s next? What’s your next race? I don’t know at this point. I’m entering the winter season and my focus is on just sustaining the fitness, get a little stronger. If I feel ready for another marathon, I can always find another marathon. I had a pretty good season in the summer. I’ve done three or four half Ironmans. I did one full Ironman and then I did the Chicago Marathon. So it was kind of a busy summer season, and right now I’m just in the process of getting stronger and we’ll see maybe January, December, February, something comes up and I’ll be like, let’s do it.
You’ve played more regular-season games than any other defenseman in NHL history. How were you able to do that?
Chara: Took care of my body. I worked so hard and trained so hard, I think that’s what probably made me last so long. Maybe some people would think differently. Maybe some people think that when you work so hard and you train so many times a day and that you’re going to have way more wear and tear on your body. But it worked for me. I took so much pride in my fitness and being always in top of my shape and good conditioning and strengthening. Obviously I didn’t have any huge major injuries. I had my share of injuries, but I was pretty lucky that I didn’t get really bad ones.
What’s the one element of your fitness routine that you felt helped you the most in your career?
Chara: I grew up as a Greco-Roman wrestler, so I did a lot of Greco-Roman wrestling and I think that was hugely important for me. It was not just to be weight strong, but to be body strong, stand up strong, you control your body, way differently and way better when you are wrestling man against man rather than just lifting weights. I mean, you can be as strong as you can be lifting weights, but then you go on a mat and you are wrestling other men that are at least 240, 250 pounds. It’s a completely different exercise, completely different strengthening. So I think for me, doing Greco-Roman wrestling was the difference maker.
How did you incorporate it into your training? You weren’t doing it during the season, were you?
Chara: Only the offseason. During the season you don’t have time to wrestle and also you don’t want to risk injuries. But my dad was a wrestler and I was able to grow up with wrestling and continue to do that in the summers for my entire career.
The one injury everyone always remembers was the 2019 Stanley Cup Final when you broke your jaw in multiple places. You got surgery with two plates, wires and screws and played in Game 5. What do you remember most about playing that next game?
Chara: The fans were so supportive and amazing to show their gratitude and appreciation of me being on the edge and playing. I will never forget that ovation. I felt it in my heart and that will always stick with me forever. I’m just, I’m forever grateful for that.
What did it take to suit up and get through that game?
Chara: I was pretty tired, pretty exhausted from traveling back, going through the surgery the next day, waking up, just having a little bit to eat. But everybody at that point of the playoffs is exhausted. So I just had to stay calm and really focus on spending every ounce of energy I had left in my body to leave it on the ice.
