Kyle Larson’s second attempt at completing the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day failed on Memorial Day. The driver confirmed in the aftermath that he wouldn’t be giving it a shot once again anytime soon. But there is another challenge that he hasn’t removed from his checklist yet: Racing in the Australian Supercars.
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He told the press back in January that the preliminary talks for him to participate in Supercars have already begun and are underway. At Nashville this weekend for the 14th Cup Series race of the season, he provided a more realistic picture of how close he is to making his debut in the biggest motorsports platform in the land down under.
He said, “I would like to race. It could be fun. It’s just that there is a lot that goes into it, logistically. It’s even tougher than doing Indy. You would have to be down there for two or three weeks.” Missing Cup Series races for that long would end up being detrimental to his NASCAR season. And that’s too high a cost.
Kyle Larson is still in the ‘exploratory’ phase of potentially running an Australian Supercars race at the end of the year or sometime in the future: pic.twitter.com/HyCEFp5WlF
— Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) May 31, 2025
He declared, “If not this year, then down the road. Another time.” It is inferable from his words that his debut in V8 Supercars might not be on the books for now. After the heartbreak he suffered in the Double, it is only fair that he goes back to focusing on his job rather than to plan his next thrill-seeking, side quest adventure. Rick Hendrick, for sure, would appreciate it.
Larson does not think he could race very well in Supercars
Larson does have a strong reputation for being a driver who could jump into any type of race car and be successful in it. But V8 Supercars aren’t just another brick in the wall. It takes special expertise and talent to pilot them. Awareness of this is what led to Larson being cautious when asked about his chances to be victorious in his debut race, like how Shane van Gisbergen was.
He said, “Obviously, I would not expect to run very good because Shane van Gisbergen, he came in [to NASCAR] and kicked all of our butts. So I know these Australian racers and Supercars drivers are extremely good. So I would not be surprised to run last.” The former IndyCar Series driver James Hinchcliffe held a similar view as well.
But, of course, these are just words and views. How good Larson is can only be known on the day he gets into one of those cars to race, and that will not be anytime soon. For now, the focus is all on collecting playoff points that will help become a second-time Cup Series champion.
