On Thursday, Kyle Larson participated in and passed the orientation program all rookies must go through in order to be approved for the Indy 500.
The full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver announced earlier this year his intent to participate in the legendary race with Arrow McLaren. Next May, he will race the Indy 500 (Indianapolis, IN) and Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte, NC) in the same day.
There are 3-phases to the test, where the speed is all regulated by the driver themselves and not governed by the team or INDYCAR. Typically, the cars are set up not to exceed more than 220 mph and being a single-car run, cannot approach full race speed.
The three phases in order to pass are:
-10 laps running at 205-210mph
-15 laps running at 210-215mph
-15 laps running at 215+ mph
In the first stint, Larson ran a total of 17 laps to complete the first phase, even running one lap too fast to be counted. After a short break, Larson completed another 20 laps to clear the second phase, and took another break before returning to the track a final time. In the final phase, he ran his fastest speed of the day at 217.898 mph, and officially completed the program.
“It was fun,” said Larson. “The speed and grip didn’t feel scarier than I thought it might. It went really smooth.”
Larson will be the first driver to attempt the “double” since Kurt Busch in 2014 when he did it with Andretti Autosport and Stewart-Haas Racing. Busch finished 6th in the 500, but suffered an engine failure in the 600 resulting in a 40th-place finish.
