Honest Kyle Larson Concedes Defeat to Max Verstappen Despite IndyCar Partner’s Stunning 8-Word Claim

Max Verstappen would undoubtedly rank among the best race car drivers in the world right now. And it makes sense, all thanks to his sheer dominance in the F1 circuits. However, NASCAR’s very own, Kyle Larson, is growing in stature as a prominent racer. With his endeavor to crown himself the Indy 500 champion, there’s been a growing debate among the fans in the country: Who among the two is a better racer?

However, Larson’s Arrow McLaren teammate, Alexander Rossi, who has seen the best of both Formula 1 and Indy Car racing, stated them to be on a similar level. Despite the praise and the comparison, the HMS star doubted his racing abilities going against Mad Max in an open-wheel race car.

Kyle Larson questions the criteria that define the best race car driver

Kyle Larson is one of the favorites to win the Indianapolis 500 race this weekend as a part of a historic attempt at “The Double”. With an impressive qualifying run last Saturday, he managed to secure himself a P5 starting position for the main race. For a driver who competes full-time in NASCAR, it created a lot of buzz among motorsports fans across the globe, and many even got on the hype train, comparing him to Max Verstappen.

Alexander Rossi chimed in on the discussion with his verdict via PlANETF1.com, “I would say they’re on the same level. Which is like, yeah, that’s a pretty big deal.” However, he expressed that he won’t be happy if the HMS star pipes him for a historic win, just like he did in his debut Indy 500 race back in 2016. “I’ll understand how everyone else felt when I won. Is he capable of doing it? Yeah. Would I be happy for the team? Yeah. Would I be internally annoyed? Yeah.”

Meanwhile, Larson wasn’t fancying his chances of going up against Verstappen in an open-wheel race contest, “I can’t beat him in an F1 car. And I bet he can beat me in an Indy car, just based on his street and road course experience.” But, he wasn’t too convinced by the idea of the best race car driver, purely based on results of a single series or league. “I don’t understand how this can even be a thing. If you don’t run multiple disciplines, how can anyone say you are the best,” the 2021 Cup Series champion added.

Unfortunately, Kyle Larson’s attempts to run 500 miles at Indianapolis, followed by 600 miles at the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR event, are under threat. The weather forecast for the Indy 500 race is not looking good, which just might falter the driver’s plans to fly back to Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend.

Will Larson ditch the Coca-600 race over the Indy 500?

Hendrick Motorsports and Larson will face a tough call in case the weather decides to play spoilsport at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The owner of the team, Rick Hendrick, explained in a recent interview that deciding between the two events would be a difficult choice. Given the amount of preparation and effort that has gone into Larson’s debut run for the Indy 500.

NASCAR, meanwhile, has assured that they will do everything within their power to allow Larson to run the Coca-Cola 600 race. “We’re going to work closely with the folks at Speedway Motorsports, our TV broadcast partners, the folks at HMS to do everything we can to make sure that Kyle can get there. Without reason, you know, you know, we’ve got some minute by minute and when we go our command and when the green flag,” Elton Sawyer said via SiriusXM NASCAR on X.

Hopefully, Larson gets to compete in both events and complete his attempt at Double Duty. But it won’t be a surprise if his team decides to opt for the Indy 500 run, given that he is a genuine contender to win the race.