SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Day 2 running laps in preparation for the May 25 Indianapolis 500 was both encouraging and functional for NASCAR star Kyle Larson. The 2021 Cup Series champ ran 103 laps Wednesday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and turned in a fast lap of 223.985 mph, double the number of laps and ultimately a faster speed than Tuesday’s opening practice.
Even with three brief stoppages for rain in the six hours of on-track time available, Larson’s No. 17 Arrow McLaren Racing Chevrolet turned in a full day of work at the historic speedway, setting his fastest speed of the day in the closing 10 minutes of practice.
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Much of the 32-year-old Californian’s time on track came with a fellow NASCAR champion watching. Three-time and reigning Cup Series champ Joey Logano was a trackside guest of Team Penske, the two-time defending Indy 500 winning team that also fields cars for Logano, Ryan Blaney and Austin Cindric in NASCAR’s premier series.
“It’s fun to watch Larson as one of us,” Logano said with a grin, “He’s a freak, able to just do whatever he wants and to jump in and be good at it.”
Five drivers have attempted the Memorial Day weekend “Double” — the late John Andretti, Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon, Kurt Busch and Larson. Only Stewart, however, has completed all 1,100 miles.
Larson, who planned to compete in both races last year, didn’t get a chance to run laps in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for the NASCAR part of the doubleheader. After an 18th-place finish in the Indy 500, he was late arriving at Charlotte Motor Speedway because of a rain-delayed race start in Indy. When he did arrive at the Charlotte track, the weather had already halted action, and ultimately, NASCAR called the race early.
Asked if he ever had a desire to try the double, Logano was quick to decline.
Reigning NTT IndyCar Series champion, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou, posted the top speed of the day — and the week so far — with a lap of 227.546 mph around the massive 2.5-mile historic oval. The speed was so good that Palou was nearly two mph quicker than the field of 34 cars vying for a spot in the 33-car starting lineup.
The 2018 Indy 500 winner, Penske Racing’s Will Power, was second fastest at 225.584 mph. Power’s No. 12 Chevrolet was quickest on Tuesday’s opening day of practice. His Penske teammate, two-time defending Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden, was third on the speed chart with Ganassi’s Scott Dixon and Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Connor Daly rounding out the top five.
MORE: Larson’s opening day Indy 500 practice recap
Larson said he was satisfied with his Wednesday effort and that he definitely feels more comfortable already with the benefit of having an Indy 500 under his belt.
“The pit stop stuff, I know what to expect a little bit better there and what it takes to turn into the stall and get stopped at your sign,” Larson said, adding, “I should get up to speed a little quicker on that [now] and then I think race procedure still I will revisit later in the week. I made some mistakes on the starts last year, missed some shifts and stuff so hopefully I will clean that up a little bit this year and make things easier on myself.
“As far as confidence and whatnot with the car, I’m more confident after yesterday than I was with the open test (earlier this month). I feel like my balance is better this time around, just have gotta get it better in traffic.”
Practice resumes Thursday with the six-hour session starting at noon ET (FS2). Television coverage moves to FS1 at 4 p.m. ET. Fast Friday to prepare for pole qualifying follows with another six-hour session from noon to 6 p.m. ET. Two days of qualifying to set the 33-car field are Saturday and Sunday. Larson started fifth last year.