A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
The Indianapolis 500 takes place this weekend, and there's no shortage of storylines. Josef Newgarden will try to become the first driver to win three straight, but he'll have to do so from the last row on the grid after he was penalized for using an illegally modified part on his car. There's also been a rash of big crashes in practice, including this one for Scott McLaughlin, as heard on Fox.
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UNIDENTIFIED COMMENTATOR #1: Yeah.
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UNIDENTIFIED COMMENTATOR #1: Oh, good Lord.
UNIDENTIFIED COMMENTATOR #2: The sound of the impact.
MARTÍNEZ: Oof. He was able to walk away. Fans will also be watching Kyle Larson. He wants to not only compete the - in the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, but also NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 race in Charlotte. Larson is hoping to become just the second driver after Tony Stewart to finish both races on the same day. And when we spoke earlier, I began by asking him why he wanted to try the Indy-Charlotte Double.
KYLE LARSON: Why? I don't know. I just love racing, and I love, you know, challenging myself and racing in big events. So I don't know. It's just more fun than anything to me.
MARTÍNEZ: Fun, right? I mean, that's why anybody would do anything like this, right? Yeah. So last year, rain got kind of in the way of your attempt. Now, aside from the weather, I mean, what do the logistics look like to get from Indianapolis to Charlotte in time?
LARSON: So as soon as the race is done here at Indy, I'll helicopter to the Indianapolis Airport, hop on a private jet, and then fly to Concord, North Carolina. That flight's about an hour and 15 minutes or so. And then hop on another helicopter to the NASCAR track there at Charlotte Motor Speedway and basically get straight in the NASCAR and get running for, you know, another four hours or so.
MARTÍNEZ: What are you going to do on the plane? I mean, like, do you eat? Do you sleep? Do you take a long bathroom break? What do you get to do in that hour and 15 minutes?
LARSON: So last year, I didn't get to do the race in Charlotte 'cause it was raining, but let's see. I had, like, a protein-style bowl. I had an IV. And then - yeah, then you just get dressed up in your other fire suit and get ready to go for the race. So it was enough time to get relaxed. I felt ready to go, you know, for the race there.
MARTÍNEZ: I mean, how do you feel after finishing just one of these races? And how do you think you'll feel after finishing two in one day?
LARSON: I'm not sure. I think it depends on the weather. You know, if it's cooler outside, it obviously makes things a little easier. Right now it looks like it'll be cooler. But still, I think it's mentally draining more than anything, and just, you know, having the ability to stay focused for that long is tough.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. Indianapolis - 200 laps around a 2 1/2-mile oval track. Charlotte - 400 laps, 1 1/2-mile quad oval track. What's the big difference? What's the thing between an oval track and a quad oval track?
LARSON: I mean, I wouldn't really call Charlotte a quad oval. I would still consider it an oval, but it's just shaped a little bit different than Indy. But the cars are different. You know, the Indy car goes a little bit faster, and it has more downforce and stuff. But relatively, I don't really feel like they're that far different from each other. I think they drive somewhat similar. So it makes the learning curve a little bit easier for me, and it was nice not completely feeling like I was learning something way new.
MARTÍNEZ: Say you get through both. You finish both. Regardless of where you wind up, I mean, what are you hoping that people that are following this are hoping to get out of, like, seeing you try this?
LARSON: Yeah, I don't know. I think just - maybe just respect of somebody, you know, trying to attempt something like this. It's obviously tough - nine, potentially 10 hours behind the wheel of a car in one day, you know, two different races. Like, it's a pretty awesome thing. So yeah, regardless of how it goes, I think, you know, people can respect somebody trying to do it.
MARTÍNEZ: That's Kyle Larson. He'll try to race for Arrow McLaren in the Indianapolis 500 and for Hendrick Motorsports in the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte on Sunday. Kyle, good luck and thanks.
LARSON: Thank you.
(SOUNDBITE OF MF DOOM'S "COFFIN NAILS") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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