When the 33 cars roll off the line for the start of the 109th Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, Kyle Larson will begin a journey that he hopes will cover 1100 miles, involve a pair of checkered flags, and place him in rarified air in motorsport history.
For the second consecutive season, Larson is attempting “The Double,” meaning he will first race in the Indianapolis 500, then make the trip to Charlotte to run in the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600. As with last year, Larson is driving for Arrow McLaren, alongside their full-time trio of Pato O’Ward, Christian Lundgaard, and Nolan Siegel.
Ahead of his attempt, let’s dive into the history of “The Double,” what happened last season, just what the schedule might be for Larson, and what could throw a wrench into his plans of making motorsport history.
What is “The Double?”
Let’s start with a basic question: What, exactly, is “The Double?”
The Double is, as outlined above, a driver attempting to race in two of the most prestigious races in all of motorsport on the same day: First, the Indianapolis 500 and then later NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600, held at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The Indianapolis 500 is one of the three races — along with the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans — that make up the “Triple Crown of Motorsport.”
The Coca-Cola 600 (formerly the World 600) is the longest race on the NASCAR schedule and is considered one of the biggest races of the season, along with the Daytona 500.
The Double is a physical and mental challenge, requiring drivers not just to handle 1100 miles at two different race tracks, but also to master two different race cars: The IndyCar single-seater and the NASCAR stock car.
Has anyone ever completed “The Double?”
14 drivers have attempted The Double in motorsport history, with Larson’s attempt last season the most recent.
However, only a handful of drivers have made the attempt when both events were on the same day and only one driver, Tony Stewart, has managed to complete every lap.
Junior Johnson was the first to try The Double, back during the 1963 season. However, while the NASCAR Cup champion completed the World 600 that year, he did not qualify for the Indianapolis 500.
That year the two races also fell on different days, and while other drivers tried The Double in subsequent years, the races were either on different days or scheduling issues when the NASCAR race was moved to the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend along with the Indianapolis 500 prevented any attempts.
That changed when lights were installed at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1992, allowing for night racing. The 1993 Coca-Cola 600 was moved to a 4:30 p.m. start (Eastern time), and the 1994 race was pushed back even more, opening up a travel window.
That allowed for the first true attempt at The Double the following season.
The first driver to attempt a “same-day” double was John Andretti, back in 1994. He qualified for both events and finished the Indianapolis 500 tenth before flying to Charlotte. He missed the drivers’ meeting and started at the back, and dropped out on Lap 220 with engine failure.
In 1995 Davy Jones tried The Double, but he failed to qualify for the Coca-Cola 600.
Robby Gordon was up next, in 1997. He qualified for both races, but the Indianapolis 500 was rained out that Sunday, so he went to Charlotte where he finished 41st in the Coca-Cola 600. A crash saw him finish 41st, and he went back to Indianapolis for the 500. That was started on Monday and eventually finished on Tuesday due to more rain in the area, and Gordon eventually dropped out due to a fire, finishing 29th.
Tony Stewart’s first attempt at The Double came in 1999, where he qualified 24th for the Indianapolis 500. He finished ninth in that race, completing 490 of the 500 miles. He then flew to Charlotte where he finished fourth in the Coca-Cola 600.
However, Stewart made history in 2001, becoming the first driver to complete all 1,100 miles of both races on the same day. He finished sixth in the 2001 Indianapolis 500 and on the lead lap. He made it to Charlotte for the start of the Coca-Cola 600, and while he started at the back of the field for missing the drivers’ meeting — and spun on Lap 2 — he finished third, and on the lead lap.
He remains the only driver to have completed all 1,100 miles of both races on the same day.
Gordon as well as Kyle Busch have attempted The Double in the years since then, but neither driver was able to complete all 1,100 miles.
What happened in the first “Hendrick 1100?”
Last year was Larson’s first attempt at The Double, which has been dubbed the “Hendrick 1100” by Hendrick Motorsports. He qualified fifth for last year’s Indianapolis 500, but heavy rain in Indianapolis on race day delayed the start of the 500 by four hours. He decided to stay and drive the full Indianapolis 500, where he finished in 18th due in part to a pit road speed limit penalty, that took him out of contention.
Meanwhile in Charlotte Justin Allgaier was at the ready as a relief driver, and he ended up driving the first 249 laps of the Coca-Cola 600. Larson arrived in Charlotte as a weather delay hit, halting the race.
The race was eventually called by NASCAR officials due to the long delay and difficulty drying the track.
Larson is now back for his second crack at The Double, and he will start 21st in Indianapolis.
During Thursday’s media day Larson admitted the buildup has drained him a bit, but he will be ready to go.
“Outside the car, it’s been crazier this year logistics-wise. Going to New York and having a full day of media there and then flying back here. Going to the Fever game was fun,” said Larson to the media, including SB Nation. “Then yesterday had a lot more kind of media stuff to do, and then you have media day today. It’s like three days of — don’t take this the wrong way — but answering the same questions. It kind of drains you a little bit.
“I will be happy when today is done.”
He also admitted that with this being his second attempt, there has been less attention, and he’s been able to fly “under the radar” more.
“Yeah, I actually like that a lot. I feel like I get a lot of attention in everything that I do and race, and I don’t really like that because I feel like it takes away from the spotlight of others. This year has been better because I feel like I’ve kind of flown under the radar a little bit more. Not really under the radar, still obviously an important thing, and I have still gotten a lot of coverage,” added Larson in a Friday press conference. “But last year I felt, like, crazy.
“It’s been good. It’s been more normal, and I like it that way.”
Why Larson might be forced to leave the Indy 500
There is an added wrinkle to this year’s attempt at The Double.
NASCAR changed the rules regarding “playoff waivers,” which would allow a driver who missed a race a waiver into the playoffs, provided they qualified. Waivers will still be available for drivers who missed a race to get into the playoffs, however, they will be required to forfeit any playoff points accumulated before that point in the season, and they will not acquire any future playoff points.
This rule change means that the Coca-Cola 600 will be Larson’s priority, and if weather causes a delay in Indianapolis, he’ll have to head to Charlotte.
In that scenario, Arrow McLaren has a Plan B, and an amazing one at that.
They’ll call on a former winner of the Indianapolis 500 to take his place.
That would be none other than Tony Kanaan, Arrow McLaren’s Team Principal and the winner of the 2013 Indianapolis 500. Kanaan finished a veteran’s refresher test earlier this month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and is ready to go if the team needs him.
