Kyle Larson’s Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 double attempt ends in double retirement

Kyle Larson was aiming to become just the second driver in history to complete both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day. But instead, he retired from both races in a frustrating double outing.

Larson kicked off his day by making his second consecutive appearance in the Indy 500 with Arrow McLaren.

Light rain and drizzle delayed the start of the race, but the weather cleared up in time to allow Larson to go ahead with his plans to complete the double.

Lining up 19th on the grid, Larson made some progress towards the front before stalling on the pitroad and dropping back down the order.

The 32-year-old still had a shot at finishing the race, but on lap 91 he lost the rear-end of his car while shifting down the gears and was sent spinning rear-first into the wall at Turn 2.

Kyffin Simpson and Sting Ray Robb were also caught up in the melee and forced to retire from the race.

"We were just bunched up on the restart and I was really close to Takuma [Sato] in front of me and got kind of aero-tight behind him and as I peeked left, the nose grabbed [toward the surface] and I spun," Larson explained.

"I hate that I caused that crash and hate that others got collected in it. I hate it for ... everybody that put a lot into making this effort possible."

After a premature end to his Indy 500 outing, Larson hopped on a private jet to Charlotte to take part in the longest race on the NASCAR Cup Series calendar, the Coca-Cola 600.

Things appeared to be on the up when he grabbed the lead in the #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on lap 10.

But just 28 laps later he hit the wall, with the damage forcing him into a spin shortly afterwards.

Despite pitting several times for repairs, he managed to get back on the lead lap, only for his race to end when he couldn’t avoid the out-of-control car of Daniel Suarez.

The right-rear side of Larson’s Chevrolet was too damaged and he had to head to the pits to retire the car.

“I hate the way the day went,” Larson summed up. “I wish I could hit the reset button. I feel terrible for everybody, especially for [team owner] Rick Hendrick.”

“I guess it just wasn’t meant to be, I guess.”

This was the second time in two years that Larson attempted to pull off double duty. 

Last year, he finished 18th in a rain-delayed Indy 500. By the time he reached Charlotte, the Cola-Cola 600 was already at around half-distance. While he wanted to jump into the car and take over the driving duties from Justin Allgaier, the race was stopped because of poor weather.

With his second attempt in 2025 also failing, Larson has cast doubt about returning to the Indy 500 again. His deal with Arrow McLaren was only for two years.

“The double is a tough undertaking,” he said. “The window of time is just too tight.”

"I don't know [if I will return]. It's a large investment and to have it go not good two years in a row, I just don't think it's really worth it at this point."

Kurt Busch remains the only driver to complete all 1100 miles of racing across Indy and Coca-Cola 600 thanks to his successful attempt in 2001.