A decade after Kurt Busch became the last race car driver to attempt the Memorial Day Double, Kyle Larson is gearing up to take on the cross-country event himself.
On Sunday morning, Larson will start the 108th Indianapolis 500 at 12:45 p.m. ET, then fly to Charlotte, North Carolina immediately after to drive NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600. It’s one of the most unique feats in sports. Racing two different types of cars on the highest circuits has been attempted just 10 times by five drivers, but only four ended up qualifying for both. Larson would become the fifth to compete in both races on the same day if all goes well.
Tony Stewart is the only one to complete all 1,110 miles, finishing sixth in the 2001 Indy 500 before taking third in the Coca-Cola 600. Larson might just top that.
Despite the brutal day he has ahead, Larson is now the betting favorite to win the Coca-Cola 600 at BetMGM. After opening with +450 odds, he’s moved to +475. That said, he’s not getting much love from the public. Only 5.6 percent of all bets on the winner of the Coca-Cola 600 are on Larson as of Thursday. Chris Buescher has both the highest handle (11 percent) and tickets (7.6 percent).
Amazingly, Larson has the third-best odds (+675) to win the Indy 500 despite this being his first time in the race and his first IndyCar race overall. Only three rookies have ever won the 500 mile race with Alexander Rossi the last to do it in 2016. IndyCar titans Juan Pablo Montoya and Hélio Castroneves are the only other two drivers to take the checkered flag in their first Indy 500 race.
Larson will likely be hailed as a hero of the sport simply by finishing both races, but the expectations from oddsmakers are already setting a much higher bar for him to clear.
