The Double didn’t even wind up being The One-and-a-Half for Kyle Larson. The NASCAR Cup star fell short — way short — in Sunday’s bid to become only the second driver in history to finish both the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.
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It was the second straight year that the Hendrick Motorsports driver would experience disappointment. Last year, Larson finished 18th in the Indy 500, earning Rookie of the Year honors. But weather delays forced Larson to leave Indy late and he was unable to get to Charlotte to compete in the NASCAR nightcap — which also was impacted by rain, with just 249 of the scheduled 400 laps able to be run.
Fast-forward to Sunday and this time, Larson didn’t even finish the 500. In fact, he didn’t even finish half of the scheduled 200-lap event, spinning, losing control and then crashing on Lap 92, bringing his attempt at Double history to a disheartening 27th-place finish.
Larson’s day in Indy came to an unexpected end in an atypical manner: One of the most exceptional drivers in all forms of racing, and someone that several of his peers say has uncanny car control, Larson made a totally uncharacteristic mistake that cost him dearly.
Somehow, on a restart, Larson lost control, went sliding to his left, tried to correct the spin only to turn right, hit the wall and collected a couple of other cars in the process, ending those drivers’ (Kyffin Simpson and Sting Ray Robb) days early as well.
It should be noted that Larson was on cold tires at the time of the incident. Instead of waiting for the rubber temperature to come up, Larson mashed the gas and the rest became infamy.
“Just a bit crazy there on the restart,” Larson told FOX Sports. “I got like, tight behind Takuma (Sato). I was really close in.
“I got loose and kind of got all over the place, and yeah, so it spun. Just hate that I got a little too eager on the restart. Hate it for everybody else.”
Sting Ray Robb said, “When Kyle started losing it and checking up, I tried to go around the outside and there was just no grip out there.”
While last year’s month of May was fairly uneventful for Larson in test and practice sessions, as well as qualifying, he was fairly impressive in his rookie attempt at conquering the Brickyard.
But the month of May in 2025 for the 109th running of the Indy 500 was one of several significant issues for Larson. He crashed in testing, then crashed again in a practice session, then started a less-than-stellar 19th for the big race.
And then came Sunday’s race. Larson simply was not competitive for the first quarter of the event, sitting back for the most part between 17th and 23rd position. It’s unclear if his car wasn’t up to snuff or whether Larson was merely pacing himself, ready to make a late run toward the checkered flag.
Unfortunately, he would never get the chance to make a run to the finish due to his mistake, end of story.
A third attempt at The Double appears unlikely for Larson
Larson has said several times during the month of May that no matter how Sunday’s doubleheader played out, he likely would not attempt The Double again — or at least anytime soon.
So, unless Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren Racing and their sponsors — who all came together to back Larson in his quest for racing glory — decide to spend several million dollars once again to try the Memorial Day Weekend doubleheader, it’s quite likely we won’t see Larson in Indianapolis again. Well, except maybe for the Brickyard 400 NASCAR Cup race, that is.
If Larson does not come back to Indy for the 500, it’s likely we won’t see another NASCAR driver — with the possible exception of Kyle Busch — attempt The Double anytime soon. Don’t forget, Larson last year became the first NASCAR driver to attempt The Double since Kurt Busch did so a decade earlier.
Despite his disappointment at how his run at Indianapolis played out, there was one bright spot for Larson in a way: he was able to get to Charlotte in plenty of time for the start of the Coke 600, where he will take the green flag from the outside of the front row. Maybe his nightcap will end up being better than his day was.
