Dear, Kyle.
After an unexpectedly early end to your Indianapolis 500-Coca-Cola 600 double, you’re disappointed, probably physically and mentally tired, and a little upset with yourself because of your speeding penalty during the green flag pit stop at Indy.
At this point, hundreds of thousands of people saw your Monday morning post on X (formerly Twitter), and there is an outpouring of support from just about everyone who has written a reply.
Things didn’t go the way you wanted, but there are two old sayings that I’m guessing we both probably learned from our parents as youngsters.
1) You can’t control the weather, and 2) There’s always next time.
Looking at the way the last few weeks have transpired for you, I would say you have it pretty damn great. And I’m not just referring to the Memorial Day Double.
During the first weekend of May, you were the winner in the closest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history. That photo finish between you and Chris Buescher at Kansas Speedway went viral overnight. Every major sports outlet was discussing it — too many for me to even begin listing.
Millions of people around the country saw that your car’s nose just barely beat Buescher’s car’s nose to the line, and they all read “Kyle Larson” when they saw the name of the winner.
A week later, at Darlington Raceway, you raced in a car that was universally acclaimed for its throwback scheme. Driving the Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet is something only legends get to do, yourself included, and you honored two-time NASCAR Cup champion Terry Labonte with a livery from his 1996 championship season.
You and I were both born in the 1990s and have watched NASCAR all our lives. Seeing that iconic yellow and red Kellogg’s scheme took us back to when we were learning and falling in love with NASCAR. It’s a scheme that we may have raced on some old video games when we were kids or maybe we had some diecast cars with that scheme … whatever the case is, you got to race that scheme in real life.
Obviously, Darlington’s race didn’t turn out so great for you, but I think many would agree that it was one of the best-looking throwback cars ever to hit the track. It represented an era when NASCAR was at its greatest, and that Kellogg’s-like scheme you had was … I’m not sure how to describe it, honestly. It was like a wholesome yet nostalgic way to honor the sport’s past and the decade in which we started to appreciate auto racing.
For two weeks, you did a lot of back-and-forth between Indianapolis and Charlotte. John Andretti, Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon, and Kurt Busch all knew what that experience was like, and who better to experience it in the 2020s than you?
You’ve always been a humble and down-to-earth kind of person — at least every time I have talked to you over the years. But whether you want to hear this or not, you are in the conversation these days when it comes to the best racecar drivers on the planet.
It’s well-documented that you live and breathe racing. You’re a Cup Series champion, a winner of the Chili Bowl, the Rolex 24 at Daytona, currently 25 Cup races, and God knows how many dirt races.
There is no one in the NASCAR Cup Series field right now that was more deserving of a chance to complete the ‘Double.’ Unfortunately, the weather decided to do the ‘Double’ with you as it delayed the 500 several hours and then cut the 600 short — just as you arrived at your pit box at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
There are plenty of positives to take away from your Indy experience, though.
1) You qualified fifth — FIFTH! — for your first 500. That’s impressive for someone who had never raced in the IndyCar Series.
2) You ran as high as sixth during the race when you followed the same strategy as the other leaders. I know you want to beat yourself up for speeding on pit road late in the race, but hey, you live and learn. And then, when you were off the leaders’ strategy, you led four laps. That’s freakin’ cool and quite the addition to your already unbelievable resumé.
3) Now that you’ve run the 500, you better understand the race. How the cars run in traffic, how they run in clean air, the attrition needed to get to the checkered flag, the difficulties of getting down to pit road speed, all of it. If you rerun it, you will have all this experience to help you with any future attempts.
4) That Arrow McLaren and Hendrick deal is a two-year accord. Announce that you’re attempting the ‘Double’ again in 2025, Kyle. We ALL want to see it.
After the 500, you and the Hendrick brigade rushed to Charlotte so you could relieve Justin Allgaier in the No. 5 car. He was having a good run for you. He was running 13th on the lead lap when the weather arrived in Stage 3, and it’s a shame race fans didn’t get to see you climb in and carry it home to the finish.
I don’t know what you felt when you arrived at the track, but it was well-documented by television and social media users who recorded you climbing out of the golf cart and jogging down the pedestrian aisle of the pit lane. A crew member asked if you were tired, and you replied, “Nah, I’m good.” You must have been amped up on adrenaline and perhaps even got a boost from the crowd, who started cheering for you the instant your helicopter touched ground outside the track.
I know you’re disappointed that you only got 500 of the 1,100 planned miles in on Sunday. But your Month of May was so fascinating from start to finish. Watching a generational talent who is in the prime of his career win the closest finish in NASCAR history, drive one of the most iconic liveries from the 1990s, qualify and run well at attempt No. 1 of the Indy 500, and then arrive in Charlotte despite all the weather obstacles was something that will be talked about for years to come.
Kyle Larson, you are a legend in the making. I speak for everyone when I say we can’t wait to see you attempt the ‘Double’ again sometime soon.
