KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Kyle Larson has not yet begun considering his comeback to the Indianapolis 500.
It will be different by Sunday evening.
And his greatest desire would be to have those thoughts instead.
“the Double”
— completing every circuit of both the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day during Memorial Day weekend — comes into focus more vividly for him than standing in victory lane at Kansas Speedway, where Larson will be present.
defending his win
From a year back in the nearest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history.
I haven’t spent too much time thinking about it. I’ve mostly just been looking forward to these coming races and the tracks where we expect good performance,” Larson stated prior to securing the pole position for Sunday’s event. “Once the checkered flag drops at Kansas, I’ll get pumped up for Indy since my next stop will be Indianapolis.
He has qualifying scheduled for next weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Last year, Larson experienced an unforgettable May during which he pulled off a thrilling outside pass of Chris Buescher and edged past him by just 0.001 seconds to clinch victory at Kansas Speedway. From there, he moved on to Indianapolis, but inclement weather created a nerve-wracking race weekend and eventually prevented him from finishing all 1,100 scheduled laps.
Larson was one of the front-runners in the rain-postponed Indy 500 until he received a late penalty for exceeding speed limits in the pit lane.
left him 18th
He subsequently boarded a flight to Charlotte, but the rainfall there prevented him from venturing out.
a single lap
during the Cup Series event.
“I’ve had quite a hectic time lately due to all the races I’ve participated in,” explained Larson, after being caught up in a severe crash during his sprint car event at Lakeside Speedway as part of the High Limit Racing series on Friday evening.
“Using Indy as an example, I must admit my involvement has been minimal; academically speaking, there isn’t much one can accomplish either. Watching videos would be beneficial—something I plan to do—but with Indy, you generally have ample free time. Thus, when you finally step into the vehicle and grasp how it handles, you start dissecting what needs work from both learning perspectives and identifying areas of strength versus weakness.”
Larson appears to have few shortcomings driving car number 5 for Hendrick Motorsports. This year, he secured victories at Homestead and Bristol, and he has achieved top-five finishes in the last three consecutive races.
Ryan Blaney believes that Larson has few weaknesses regardless of the vehicle. He will be one of several Cup Series drivers monitoring Larson’s performance in both the Indy 500 and the sprint to win the Coca-Cola 600 this season.
However, as part of Team Penske, Blaney mentioned that he wishes Larson doesn’t finish higher than fourth on May 25 at the Indy 500, just after two-time reigning champ Josef Newgarden and his fellow Penske team members Scott McLaughlin and Will Power.
I found it quite impressive last year. He performed very well until he exceeded the speed limit on pit road,” Blaney stated. “I am certain he’ll be competitive, but yes, out of respect for Penske loyalty, I hope he finishes in fourth place. However, you can’t help cheering for him since he’s representing our team.
Other qualifying tidbits
Larson secured the pole with a lap at 183.730 mph, and remarkably, Buescher will start next to him with a speed of 183.374 mph. Right behind them, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick will line up in the second row.
Bell secured the top spot in qualifying for the past three races at Kansas. Prior to Bell, the most recent driver to achieve four consecutive pole positions at one venue was Larson, who accomplished this feat at Sonoma Raceway between 2017 and 2022.
Up-and-comers
Corey Heim, who gained fame from starring in Truck Series, is set to make his fourth Cup Series appearance. This time, he’ll be behind the wheel of a fourth car for 23XI Racing. In previous attempts last season, which were with Legacy Motor Club, one notable result was finishing 22nd in the spring race held at Kansas Speedway.
In the meantime, Jesse Love, who regularly competes in the Xfinity Series, will participate in his third-ever Cup Series race with Richard Childress Racing. His first appearance for RCR occurred during last year’s event at Bristol, and he finished 31st the previous week driving for Beard Motorsports.
Smoothing things out
Carson Hocevar attempted to mend fences with Ryan Preece this week following an incident where he caused them both to crash during the latter stages of last week’s race at Texas. Preece criticized him, stating that Hocevar shows “no regard for his own machinery or any other competitor on the track.”
“He acknowledged my perspective, and I listened to his, correct? We now share a solid mutual comprehension moving ahead,” Hocevar stated.
Odds and Ends
According to BetMGM Sportsbook, Larson at +375 odds is the top choice for winning on Sunday, with Blaney following at +700 and Tyler Reddick close behind at +750. … In the past 12 races at Kansas, Joey Logano has been the sole representative of Ford in victory lane; he secured another win last weekend at Texas. … Over the previous six NASCAR Cup Series events held at Kansas, each race was claimed by a distinct winner.
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AP auto racing:
https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Dave Skretta, The Associated Press
