Kyle Larson’s 2025 championship run was built on grit rather than dominance. The No. 5 team, previously a weekly threat under the spotlight, has now found itself fighting shadows instead. Larson’s season took a turn for the worse after his last triumph, the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway in May. The fantasy of winning the Indy 500 faded, the Coca-Cola 600 fell apart, and Victory Lane felt like a distant dream for months.

Fans began to wonder: has the spark faded? But something bigger was going on behind Hendrick Motorsports’ garage doors. Quiet leadership, quiet belief, and a team learning how to win in the face of overwhelming obstacles. And, according to Jeff Gordon, the comeback had a name: Larson’s crew chief, Cliff Daniels.

Jeff Gordon outlines the secret behind Kyle Larson’s success

“I couldn’t be more proud of the leadership of Cliff Daniels and the leader that Kyle Larson has become with that team, too.” He went on to say, “You saw it building the playoffs, hey, don’t count these guys out. They might not be leading the most laps or winning races, but they’re strong and good as anybody out there, and that’s exactly how their Sunday went at Phoenix, too,” said Jeff Gordon on the NASCAR Live podcast. The Hendrick Motorsports vice-president’s praise for Cliff Daniels’ leadership summed up one of the most remarkable stories of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

The four-time Cup Series champ is making a valid point. Kyle Larson has struggled to find his stride since his ‘double attempt’, failing to win a single race in 23 attempts. While he did finish inside the top five on seven different occasions, Victory Lane continued to elude the No. 5 driver. And in a format that thrives on the ‘win and in’ playoff structure, it’s nothing short of miraculous that ‘Yung Money’ managed to win the championship. The only explanation is that Cliff Daniels stepped up to make the best of a bad situation.

And crucial to their turnaround was Daniels’ fearless decision-making at Phoenix. On the final pit stop, with everything on the line, Daniels rolled the dice with a two-tire strategy. Now, this vaulted Larson ahead of his closest rivals, Denny Hamlin, among the championship contenders. On the other hand, Hamlin, who was in the lead before, opted for four tires and ended up behind Larson in the restart.

Larson held on during the chaotic restart, using those fresh right-side tires to become the highest-finishing title challenger (third) and clinch his second Cup Series championship. The win capped a playoff run where the team focused on maximizing points and minimizing mistakes, even when outpaced on raw speed.

The season was far from smooth. The unexpected loss of longtime strategist Jon Edwards, Public Relations Director for Hendrick Motorsports, and pit crew shakeups disrupted the group’s chemistry at a vulnerable moment. This was clearly visible during the summer stretch. “This double did not go well with Indy 500 and the 600 for Kyle Larson, so we started to see a bit of chink in the armor for the team,” Gordon reminded.

Larson’s second attempt at the Indy 500–Coca-Cola 600 double also ended in disappointment. The Indy 500 ended early in a crash with a self-inflicted error. Similarly, Larson crashed after he spun out just 43 laps into the Coca-Cola 600 while leading, ending his day prematurely. Despite high hopes, his ambitious double effort ended in disappointment once again.

Yet through every setback, Daniels’ unwavering belief and adaptability inspired the group. The championship-winning call at Phoenix symbolized a year spent overcoming adversity together. The victory wasn’t just about speed, but about unity and never giving up through adversity.

How Cliff Daniels used books to reignite the team’s passion

Cliff Daniels has long been the calm, analytical brain behind Kyle Larson’s explosive speed. But even the sharpest minds can lose confidence. And in 2025, Daniels openly admitted that he was struggling to regain his rhythm. During an appearance on the Stacking Pennies podcast, the No. 5 crew chief revealed how he helped Larson and the team bounce back from one of their most mentally draining stretches. Not with tools, data, or setups, but with books.

At first, Daniels thought about giving Larson space after a rough summer slump. The Indy 500 debacle and the Coca-Cola 600 heartbreak had drained everyone. But eventually, he realized that silence wouldn’t fix the problem. Instead, they needed to rebuild confidence, not avoid the pain.

That’s when he came up with an idea that was as unexpected as it was brilliant. “I wanted to do a bit of a journey with the team of letting the team hear some of the very foundational things from another voice than mine,” Daniels explained. So, he told the crew they would read three books together: Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, and Acres of Diamonds by Russell Conwell.

Each book offered a lesson in leadership, discipline, and self-belief. These were values Daniels had always preached, but now wanted the team to absorb from a new perspective. Larson, true to form, dove in. He discussed key takeaways with Daniels and shared thoughts with his crew between races, gradually reconnecting with the drive that had once defined him.

“That was just a fun thing for us to do as a team to get connected,” Daniels recalled. And that connection became their secret weapon, turning a mentally broken team into champions again.