Add Kyle Larson to the list of NASCAR stars to attempt the grueling Indy 500-Coca Cola 600 doubleheader.
The Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team announced Thursday that the former NASCAR Cup Series champion will drive in the 2024 Indianapolis 500. Larson and team owner Rick Hendrick will co-own his Chevrolet and carry sponsorship from HendrickCars.com.
“I’m super excited,” Larson said (via IndianapolisMotorSpeedway.com). “Competing at the Indianapolis 500 is a dream of mine and something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time — since I was a child before I ever began competing in sprint cars. To do it with Arrow McLaren, and Mr. Hendrick especially, is a dream come true.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity and am really looking forward to it even though it’s still about a year-and-a-half away. I’m really looking forward to competing in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 and maybe even get a win or two that day.”
It’s worth noting that Arrow McLaren SP principal stockholder Sam Schmidt mentioned last fall he was interested in bringing aboard a NASCAR driver for the Indy 500, but that driver was Kyle Busch.
Only four NASCAR drivers, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Robby Gordon and John Andretti, have ever pulled off the Coca-Cola 600 and Indy 500 doubleheader in the same day. It’s truly an amazing feat. Not only because of racing endurance but logistics, as well. To get the driver from Indianapolis to Charlotte Motor Speedway is quite the haul.
Stewart remains the only driver to complete all 1,100 miles in the same day, in 2001. Remarkably, Stewart finished sixth at Indy that day, and third at Charlotte. Busch was the last to turn the double-duty feat, in 2014.
Larson, 30, has 19 career NASCAR Cup Series victories in addition to his 2021 series title.