Kyle Larson will soon kick off a long day of racing when he starts the engine of his Arrow McLaren car at Indianapolis. Set to make his Indy 500 debut from the fifth spot on the grid, the Hendrick star is expected to be one of the fastest drivers in the grid and potentially win the event. Cheering him from the Charlotte Motor Speedway will be the rest of the NASCAR Cup Series field.
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Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin believes that Larson is a representative of NASCAR up there in Indianapolis and pitches for him to be victorious. He said to NASCAR, “We’re rooting for him. Certainly, it would be hard-pressed for any of these Cup Series drivers not to be rooting for him. He’s representing us and NASCAR tomorrow, so hopefully, he has a great run tomorrow.”
Team Penske’s Austin Cindric too has got Larson’s back. Cindric is a long-time fan of the IndyCar Series and looks upon Larson with a tad bit of envy. “I think he’s living the racer’s dream in a lot of ways, to go run the Indy 500 but also do it in two environments with running the double in two well-oiled programs,” he said. He continued to note that Larson finishing in fourth place would suit his “narrative”.
Indiana native and Stewart-Haas Racing driver Chase Briscoe is another IndyCar Series fan who will be supporting Larson. Furthermore, Briscoe shares the sprint car racing stage with Larson as well. He tells NASCAR, “We haven’t had a sprint car guy at the Indy 500 since Bryan Clauson, so it’s pretty cool to have the sprint car world kind of behind Kyle.”
Kyle Larson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammates express their support for him
Until 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, Larson will not have any rivals in the Cup Series field. Not even his own teammates. The 2020 Cup Series champion Chase Elliott noted that Cliff Daniels, Larson’s crew chief, has been revealing information to him that makes him say for sure that the driver has been doing a great job at Indianapolis. Byron, on the other hand, is just admiring everything Larson does.
He said, “I love it. I’m just admiring what he’s been able to do, obviously not surprised. I think Dale Jr. said this: ‘Not surprised but impressed.’ I feel like he picks it up so naturally, and I would love to pursue that one day.” Larson will complete his Indy 500 and be back to Concord to start the engine of his #5 Chevy Camaro. That’s when all the love, support, and admiration will end.
