Roger Penske Places His Trust on NASCAR to Reassure Rick Hendrick and Co. of Kyle Larson’s Title Shot

Kyle Larson’s ambitious dream to complete the Double of 1100 miles fell victim to heavy rains, effectively ending his hopes of racing in the Coca-Cola 600. His determination was evident when he arrived at Charlotte Motor Speedway with urgency, but sadly, only to encounter another storm. The red flag waved didn’t just mark the end of the race but also marked the end of a dream for the HMS star.

Despite his best efforts, Kyle Larson couldn’t race the Coca-Cola 600. Hence, a waiver is what the No. 5 driver and his team need to be eligible for the playoffs, despite already securing two wins this season. With the waiver request already submitted by Hendrick Motorsports (HMS), NASCAR is deliberating on this matter with due priority. And just like many fellow drivers who believe the No. 5 driver deserves a waiver for many reasons (attempting the double, increasing NASCAR viewership, being the amazing driver that he is), even the Team Penske owner seems to believe in the HMS driver’s capabilities.

Another push for Larson’s waiver

Right now, the entire NASCAR world is watching with keen interest, and speculation abounds on the outcome. Even top-level executives of motorsports remain speculative due to the unprecedented nature of this event. Joining the supporters is Team Penske owner Roger Penske.

Penske and Jim Campbell have come out in support of Kyle Larson. However, regarding the verdict, just like Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, and Michael McDowell, they have also left it to NASCAR. Roger Penske told NBC, “I mean, certainly I want to see him not lose anything by coming to the Indy 500 for sure. But Larson came here with Hendrick Motorsports to race, they did a great job, and I think it’s great for the sport.”

Not just this, Kyle Larson’s performances have been highly praised for elevating both NASCAR and IndyCar. “He’s an amazing driver. He’s a NASCAR champion,” Campbell said. “He shows that he can run in any different series, and he elevated all motorsports and got attention.”

The unprecedented nature of this event has been making the officials’ decisions speculative. Very well, waivers have been granted in the past for drivers, such as Kyle Busch in 2015, when he broke his leg at Daytona. However, no one has ever been granted a waiver for missing a NASCAR event due to competing in another motorsport. This is a significant decision for NASCAR, considering its future implications.

Campbell’s words evidently pointed out that Kyle Larson has made it possible for fans of IndyCar to be interested in NASCAR, and vice versa, meaning both sports (for the double) benefit from his exploits. Now, Campbell like the most, hopes that these endeavors of #5 Chevy drivers won’t go unnoticed by NASCAR.

Other drivers’ perspectives on the entire waiver as well as Larson’s debut

In his recent Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny Hamlin spoke his mind out on the entire Kyle Larson debacle. And he very well opined in favor, partly due to his own racing instincts that always want to compete with the best. “My guess is they will give him a waiver, which is fine by me absolutely. I mean, I want to compete with him in the playoffs,” said Denny Hamlin.

The JGR driver, despite having a bad Charlotte run, also stated that it was only fair because NASCAR didn’t reserve him any special points. “He lost out by not being able to collect any points for the 600, right? I mean that really was the penalty in my mind. And I think it’s a fair one.” He further added, “Christopher Bell made 67 points in this race. That’s almost a two-race advantage that Kyle Larson missed out on to Christopher Bell.”

Joey Logano, on the other hand, sounded more empathetic. In his recent interview with SiriusXM NASCAR radio, he opined, ” I get it man, you’re in Indy. You’ve done all the practices, you’ve done the qualifying, you’ve done all the prep. The Indy 500 definitely rivals the Daytona 500 as the biggest race in America. It’s hard to walk away. It’s hard to leave. Unless someone told me I had a waiver, you would probably stay for it.“.

The Team Penske driver further goes on to address the controversy and makes it clear, “If anyone listened to what I said yesterday, I never picked a side. I was pointing out the tough decision that NASCAR is in. Since words have been twisted yet again….here’s what I think…What Larson did for Motorsports was amazing, and he should get the waiver.”

Thus, it’s clear that although the incident is unprecedented in NASCAR history, there is a high likelihood of Kyle Larson being granted a waiver. Ever since his return in 2021, the Hendrick Motorsports prodigy has continuously proven himself. But the question is, has he done enough for NASCAR as a whole to get this waiver?

The metrics NASCAR will use to grant this waiver and whether this will create a new exception in the rulebook are questions that will circulate in the NASCAR community until a verdict is reached.