Kyle Larson crashes during mock qualifying run in Indy 500 practice

Friday’s practice session featured several close calls and heart-stopping moments as drivers struggled to find the right balance to the cars in the face of high winds and added weight in the rear due to the hybrid power units.

Kyffin Simpson was the first to step over that line, crashing heavily at the exit of Turn 4 and going airborne in the first hour of the session. Teams and drivers alike were extremely cautious, constantly bailing out on runs or waiting hours before even heading out onto the track.

Among those choosing to wait was Kyle Larson and the No. 17 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. He finally made his first mock qualifying run of the day with just 90 minutes left in the session. However, he never completed a lap at full speed. Entering Turn 3, the car bottomed out and Larson immediately lost control, slamming the outside wall nose-first. The car continued to spin before backing into the wall in Turn 4 as well.

Larson also crashed during the Indy 500 open test last month, but this incident comes at a difficult time with just one more practice session on Saturday morning before qualifying officially begins. Larson ran just three laps on Friday, only reaching 214.223mph for a lap average.

Larson “caught off-guard”

“I’m okay,” said Larson after being released from the infield care center. “Just had a lot of front grip there in (Turn) 3. It just kind of bit and I felt it come around and it comes around quick once it does that. So, yeah, bummer. I don’t know. It is what it is. At least we kind of found both ends of the spectrum. At the open test, I hit it with the right front and today I backed it in.

“I’m not too worried about it. I think we’ll be fine. Adjust on it a little bit and track conditions will be better tomorrow. We’ll still be fast.”

Speaking to the track conditions, he added: “Obviously, it’s tricky. I spun. I was kind of caught off-guard a little bit there, but again, like I said, I think we’ll be fine. I tend to get over things pretty quickly. I know I spun, but the balance felt pretty close to being good. Just work on it a little bit and like I said, we’ll be good tomorrow.” 

Quick repairs

The team managed to make repairs to the car, just replacing the front wing and rear wing assembly. Impressively, they brought the car back to the pit lane for Larson to make another run before Fast Friday ends. Larson ran an installation lap just one hour after impacting the wall as the team prepared for a full-speed run before the session’s conclusion at 6pm EST.