Current:Home > ContactKyle Larson faces additional obstacles to completing historic IndyCar/NASCAR double Sunday -DataFinance
Kyle Larson faces additional obstacles to completing historic IndyCar/NASCAR double Sunday
View
Date:2025-04-19 06:25:05
Kyle Larson's attempt to become the first driver in a decade to pull off the rare Indy-Charlotte double this Sunday may have gotten even more difficult.
In addition to potential weather delays at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where Larson will start from the No. 5 spot in the 2024 Indy 500, the possibility of former President Donald Trump attending NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte could create additional obstacles to Larson making it to the track in time.
Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, will be making his open-wheel debut in this year's Indy 500. After the race concludes, he's scheduled to get a helicopter ride to the airport and fly to Charlotte on a charter jet for that evening's NASCAR race.
The extraordinary test of endurance is one that only four other drivers (John Andretti, Robby Gordon, Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch) have ever attempted. Busch, the 2004 NASCAR Cup champion, was the last to drive in both races in 2014.
Complicating matters further is the possibility that increased security measures that would accompany Trump's visit to Charlotte would take precedence over Larson's timely arrival.
That would put Larson in a very difficult position, since the Coca-Cola 600 is one of NASCAR's premier races and he couldn't afford to lose ground in the season-long points standings. Larson currently leads the Cup standings through 13 races.
According to Larson's NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick, the possibility for any type or weather or travel delay could end up forcing Larson to pull out of the Indy 500.
"We know we need to be at Charlotte for the points, and we're just going to let it play out then we'll make that decision Sunday," Hendrick said. "It'd be very tough, be very disappointing because of all the effort everyone has put in ... He's in such a good position, it would be extremely hard."
The current race-day forecast for Indianapolis calls for a 60% chance of rain with the possibility of thunderstorms.
Of the four drivers to attempt the 1100-mile Indy/Charlotte double, only Stewart was able to finish both races, a feat he accomplished in 2001.
veryGood! (82883)
Related
- Gen. Mark Milley's security detail and security clearance revoked, Pentagon says
- Current, future North Carolina governor’s challenge of power
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- The company planning a successor to Concorde makes its first supersonic test
- DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
- 2025 'Doomsday Clock': This is how close we are to self
- NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
- Meta releases AI model to enhance Metaverse experience
- All That You Wanted to Know About She’s All That
Ranking
- Why we love Bear Pond Books, a ski town bookstore with a French bulldog 'Staff Pup'
- Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
- Biden administration makes final diplomatic push for stability across a turbulent Mideast
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Average rate on 30
Recommendation
In ‘Nickel Boys,’ striving for a new way to see
Military service academies see drop in reported sexual assaults after alarming surge
DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
As Trump Enters Office, a Ripe Oil and Gas Target Appears: An Alabama National Forest
Jamie Foxx reps say actor was hit in face by a glass at birthday dinner, needed stitches
Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says