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Hendrick Motorsports is always prepared for anything. What is their contingency plan if Kyle Larson is unable to race in both the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte?
When Hendrick announced Larson’s plan to run “The Double” in January, this was the piece of the puzzle that was never really addressed. Now that practice has begun at Indianapolis, Larson must face the reality that Mother Nature could hamper his big plans.
The joint partnership between Hendrick and Arrow McLaren in IndyCar allows both sides to look out for their best interests.
For Arrow McLaren, the priority is the Indy 500. They have Tony Kanaan as their reserve driver, should Larson not be able to start the race. Kanaan is the team’s Sporting Director, coaching Larson through this process. Kanaan won the 500 in 2013 with KV Racing and drove for the Arrow McLaren team last year.
Should there be a weather delay or something else that causes the race to start later, the team would put Kanaan in the car. There are no more relief drivers, meaning the driver who starts the race must finish it. If Kyle starts the race and has to leave during a delay, Kanaan will not be able to replace him.
Larson has stated all along that his NASCAR duties trump everything else. He doubled down on that again in a media availability with FOX Sports last weekend at Darlington.
“I’m sure there’s a window of time that when it gets to a certain point I have to leave because the Coca-Cola 600 is the priority that weekend and chasing another NASCAR Cup Series championship is the priority.” Kurt Busch was in a similar position when he attempted The Double ten years ago.
Another question that has been floating around is, what happens if he wins the Indy 500? The post-race celebration would almost certainly prevent him from starting the Cup race on time. He addressed that in the same interview.
“I would hope NASCAR is smart enough to delay the program just a little bit. The opportunity for TV ratings and stuff would be great. But I don’t know.” Kevin Harvick will be in Larson’s Cup car this weekend at North Wilkesboro for All-Star practice and qualifying.
It seems reasonable that NASCAR would do everything it could to allow Larson ample time to get to the track. The buzz surrounding Hendrick and Larson would be impossible to ignore. Hendrick has not said who would be in the No. 5 car for the All-Star Race if Larson is somehow unable to make it.
First Indianapolis 500 Practice
Although practice began on Tuesday, Larson did not get much time on track. Rain descended upon the Speedway just 23 minutes after it went green. Kyle officially completed two laps around the 2.5-mile oval, but those were essentially going through a systems check. His top speed was 149.869 mph, well below the 229 mph speeds seen at the top of the chart.
The opportunity to do something special like this is something that Larson appreciates.
“I get excited about learning new things and being presented a new challenge, which an IndyCar is a new challenge. Learning that style of racing a little bit and racing against other drivers that I’ve watched on TV for quite a while or whatever – like that’s kind of what I get most excited about.”
Racing is just something that Larson loves to do, and he can’t seem to get enough of it. “I would do a double every weekend if I could. If we could start these Cup races earlier and I could go jet off to a sprint-car race every weekend, I would. I just like racing. But then when you race in two marquee events on the same day, I think that just adds a layer of awesomeness to it.”
Kyle Larson IndyCar Future
What Larson’s future in IndyCar looks like beyond this month is anyone’s guess. The deal was announced for two years, but Larson said he just wants to see how this year goes first. “If it scares the [expletive] out of me, I don’t know if I’m going to want to do it again.”
Outside of the Indy 500, don’t expect to see Larson in any other IndyCar races. “They do a lot of road racing, and I didn’t grow up doing that stuff. And I think those guys are way better than I am at that. I don’t want to just do it to do it. I would want to do it and be competitive.”
After seeing how Jimmie Johnson fared in his two-year IndyCar stint, it’s probably the right move for Larson to stick with his day job in the No. 5 car. “Jimmie is the best stock-car racer of all time, and he struggled really bad at the road courses.
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