Kyle Larson finally got his redemption for the horrid Indy 500 weekend he experienced several weeks earlier. In the NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis, the Hendrick Motorsports driver took the lead in overtime and picked up his fourth race win of the season. The victory helped him take the lead in the regular season championship, moving 10 points clear of teammate Chase Elliott. After the race, Larson said that he was willing to run the Indy 500 again next year.
Advertisement
Arrow McLaren had a two-year deal with the 2021 Cup Series champion but its details are yet to be worked out. Yung Money will run one more Indy 500 but the question is when. This year, he finished P18 in the race and could not make it back in time for the start of the Coca-Cola 600. It was perhaps one of the most challenging days of the HMS star’s professional career and he wants another shot at the opportunity.
Standing tall on the Yard of Bricks. pic.twitter.com/ECMsmYdE1q
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 21, 2024
“We definitely have been talking about it,” Larson said after the race. “It sounds good, I’ll say, so far, but things could change. We’ll see. I would obviously love to do it. I think everybody knows I would love to do it because in my mind I did not get to do it this year. I didn’t get to at least do the double.”
With four race wins in the bag, Yung Money has further solidified his position as one of the favorites for the title. The multiple playoff points from these wins will go a long way in his title charge. He will get 15 additional playoff points if he can hold off his teammate and win the regular season championship.
Larson had a disheartening double attempt
Larson ran his Coca-Cola 600 scheme at Sunday’s Brickyard race. It seems fitting since this track was one of the elements that prevented him from starting that Cup Series race. Rain had delayed the start of the Indy 500 this season but Yung Money stuck around and completed all 200 laps of the event.
He then traveled to Charlotte for the Coke 600 but it was too late. NASCAR had decided to call the race off due to the downpour and the HMS star did not run a single lap.
“There were so many scenarios that could have played out so many different ways,” Yung Money had said at the time. “But the worst-case scenario happened, and that’s a bummer.”
What followed was an intense debate about whether the 2021 Cup Series champion be allowed to compete for the title. NASCAR’s rule states that a full-time driver cannot miss a single race unless sanctioned by the organizers. Thankfully, the promotion allowed Larson to continue his quest for a second championship.
