Cliff Daniels on Kyle Larson giving the Indy 500 another shot: ‘I hope he does’

Kyle Larson’s attempt to complete the Indy-Charlotte Double on Memorial Day weekend did not go as planned, but that should not deter him from attempting again next year, according to his Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Cliff Daniels. Daniels, speaking with Kevin Harvick on his “Happy Hour” podcast this week, expressed hope that Larson will compete in the Indy 500 again in 2025. “I hope he does,” Daniels added.

“… I think so much good foundational progress was laid getting up to this point, that if you hit repeat for next year, the process is going to be that much cleaner, there’s going to be that much more familiarity, that much more just awareness from everybody of how it’s going to go, and maybe it doesn’t rain out two years in a row. Maybe it happens and maybe it goes pretty well.”

Rain delayed the start of the 108th Running of the Indy 500 by four hours, forcing Larson to prioritize racing in Indianapolis or the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Larson chose the 500 and didn’t get a chance to run in the 600 due to NASCAR calling the race with 151 laps remaining due to rain after he arrived from Indianapolis.

Larson finished P18 at Indianapolis and needed a waiver to remain eligible for the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Nine days after his Indy-Charlotte Double attempt gone wrong, NASCAR approved his waiver. Less than a week later at Sonoma, Larson won his third race of the season and moved back atop the points standings.

Cliff Daniels: Kyle Larson’s Indy 500-Coca-Cola 600 double attempt was a major win.

Though he didn’t manage to run the entire 1,100 miles, Daniels considers Larson’s Double effort a victory.

“Yes, the result wasn’t what we all wanted, but in my opinion, I still think it was a win and here’s why,” Daniels stated. “Globally, it was a success. It was a fantastic day for racing; it drew a lot of attention to IndyCar and NASCAR, and it truly demonstrated what someone like Kyle Larson could do, which is an important element of our sport as we know. However, it also demonstrated how he had never ran a competitive lap in an IndyCar before the green flag of the Indy 500 and was literally one minor breaking mistake and pit road entry away from a top-five result. That is wonderful. That is a win.”