When Kyle Larson puts his helmet on and climbs into the cockpit of his Arrow McLaren ride today at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he will begin his second attempt to run both the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.
But might it also be his last attempt? Or the last time by any driver for years to come?
“I hope it’s not the last,” said Larson, who goes into this attempt as the Cup points leader after his win last weekend at Kansas. “I hope this year is not the last time we ever see anybody do it because I think it’s huge for motorsports. It’s huge for IndyCar, probably even bigger for NASCAR. Hopefully the schedules will work out in the future and maybe the rules will change a little bit, too.”
What was a formidable quest in 1994 when John Andretti became the first driver to compete in both signature races on Memorial Day weekend is now immeasurably more difficult.
The start times at Indianapolis and Charlotte prove challenging even without weather issues. Any Cup driver who would attempt the double seeks a team capable of winning the Indianapolis 500 and such rides are limited. A new NASCAR rule makes an attempt to run both races riskier for Cup drivers.
NASCAR’s action came in response to Hendrick Motorsports keeping Larson at Indy last year despite four-hour rain delay instead of sending him to Charlotte to start the 600. After arriving late to Charlotte, Larson never got into his car before rain ended the 600 early.
Section 12.4.2.1.A of the Cup Rule Book states that “unless otherwise authorized by NASCAR, driver(s) and Team Owner(s) must start and attempt to complete all Championship Races to be eligible for The Playoffs.”
A new part of that section reads: “If a driver does not start and attempt to complete a Race and wishes to remain eligible for the Playoffs, that driver must request a Playoff waiver via the Playoff Waiver Request. If a Playoff waiver is granted for anything other than a medical reason or age restriction, the driver will forfeit all current and future Playoff Points earned prior to the start of the Playoffs. NASCAR’s decision to grant or decline a Playoff waiver request and subsequent loss of Playoff Points is final and non-appealable.”
Larson leads the series with 23 playoff points heading into next weekend’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte via three race wins and eight stage victories. He would lose all those playoff points and any he would earn in the remaining 14 regular season races if he doesn’t start the 600 because of his Indy 500 quest. Losing all those playoff points could cost him a chance to advance in NASCAR’s playoffs and race for a championship.
Hendrick Motorsports already has stated that it will pull Larson from the Indianapolis 500 to ensure Larson is in Charlotte in time to start the 600.
“It’s always been hard to get both races in, but I feel like they’ve made it more difficult for somebody to want to go risk that and compete in the double with how much investment it takes from everybody’s part,” Larson said of the new rule.
Larson seeks to become only the second driver since 2005 to run in both races in the same day and the fifth overall. Kurt Busch was the last to do so in 2014. Kyle Busch has come close to making an attempt. He said that Joe Gibbs nixed a deal in 2017 when Kyle Busch was at JGR. Kyle Busch also said that he sought the ride with Arrow McLaren before Hendrick Motorsports secured it for Larson.
There’s no guarantee the Hendrick/McLaren partnership continues. This is the second year of a two-year deal to give Larson the chance to run both races.
“I will say to do it this way with this kind of effort where you have your Cup team and the IndyCar team kind of collaborating with the paint scheme and sponsors and partners that are kind of crossing over and documenting it on Amazon Prime, having the level of competition, the capabilities on both sides of this with the Cup car and Indy car as well as the driver being able to be capable of doing it, I don’t know if you’ll ever see that again,” Jeff Gordon, vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, told NBC Sports.
“But if you do, it’ll be a while because it’s a huge, huge undertaking and a lot of coordination and resources to be able to do it.”
Larson admits he’s not sure he would have done it again this year had he been able to compete in both races last year as scheduled. Gordon also said that had things gone well at Indy, Hendrick might not have chosen to make the attempt this year.
One person who hopes to see Larson and others attempt it in the future is Tony Stewart, the only driver to compete all 1,100 miles in one day when he finished sixth at Indianapolis and third at Charlotte that night in 2001.
“There’s going to be that special person that comes along, even after Kyle’s generation is over,” Stewart said. “There’s going to be that one special person that that opportunity is realistic and deserved. Hopefully, they will continue having those opportunities to do the double like that.”
Larson finished 18th last year at Indy. Stewart is looking forward to what Larson can do this year and if Larson can finish better than Stewart did in both races.
“He’s more than capable of beating that,” Stewart said of his 2001 performance in both races. “I think anybody that has a record, in the back of their mind doesn’t want it to be broken, but if it’s going to be broken, Kyle’s the guy I want to do it. I think the world of Kyle Larson, we’re good friends. I have so much respect for him as a driver. Anytime he’s racing anything on dirt, I’m a fan and love watching him drive.
“I’m going to be pulling for him during May just because I know his history, he’s a dirt track guy at heart. We have similar backgrounds because of that and you’re always rooting for somebody like that.”
It starts now pic.twitter.com/N2dsAApZaE
— Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) May 13, 2025
