Kyle Larson Is Racing the 2024 Indy 500 With Arrow McLaren
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion will also attempt to run the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte that same night.
Every racing fan has their short list of drivers they'd love to see take on other disciplines, and for many, Kyle Larson is near the top. He's more than proven himself in stock cars by winning the 2021 Cup Series championship, and really, he's even more dominant on dirt short tracks. Now, he's set to try his hand at the Indianapolis 500 in 2024 with Arrow McLaren as he hopes to complete The Double on Memorial Day Weekend.
That means Larson will run a fourth Chevy-powered Arrow McLaren Indy car during the day and—hopefully—a Hendrick-prepared Chevy Camaro ZL1 at NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 that night. It's a mighty task that's been attempted by four drivers in the past, and it's impressive not only from a performance perspective but also a logistical one. To prepare for the Indy 500 is one thing; to fly to Charlotte immediately afterward and race again under the lights is another.
“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,” Larson said in a statement Thursday. “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."
Such a run reportedly wouldn't have been feasible for Arrow McLaren or Larson in 2023 as the team has already brought on Tony Kanaan to race a fourth car in this year's 500. Larson is then set to run alongside Arrow McLaren's already-established team of drivers, which currently includes Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, 2021 IndyCar champion Alex Palou, and Pato O'Ward. It's a talent-packed lineup, though that's what you've got to have in order to compete against the likes of Chip Ganassi Racing, Team Penske, and the others that make up the 33-car field.
Larson's IndyCar ride will also be supported by Hendrick Motorsports, which was a big part of locking down the seat.
“Adding Kyle Larson with a HendrickCars.com partnership to the Indy 500 lineup in 2024 is exciting for our Arrow McLaren team as well as for race fans,” McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown said. “He’s a complete driver, known for racing anything on wheels, so I’m looking forward to seeing what Kyle can do in an NTT IndyCar Series car. It’s been great working with Rick Hendrick and (Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman) Jeff Gordon to pull this together, so a big thank you to them for what’s to come in May 2024.”
There's no word yet whether Larson will compete in any other IndyCar events beforehand to prep, but in the meantime, you can catch him racing open-wheel dirt cars at tracks across the country.
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