Denny Hamlin reacts to wild Indy 500 qualifying, weighs Kyle Larson’s chances

Denny Hamlin shared his thoughts on the Indy 500 and how Kyle Larson will do in the race next weekend. On the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin reacted to the Indy 500 qualifying that included multiple crashes.

“It’s made it more compelling to watch for me because I know that the cars are on edge more,” Denny Hamlin said. “You don’t know what you’re going to see. Are they gonna have to lift or not? It’s an easy, wide open, then it’s just all about how slick can your team make your car. If you’re a Penske car, it appears you’ve made your car a little too slick. It’s compelling from that standpoint. And then obviously, we had an upset. New team, new driver on ovals wins the poll for the Indy 500. Good, compelling stories.”

Hamlin also weighed in on Larson’s chances of winning the 2025 Indy 500. “He’s going to have his work cut out for him,” Hamlin said about Kyle Larson. “He’s going to get plenty of experience, and he’s got stuff to lean on from last year to better his craft.”

Kyle Larson is ready to do some big things at the Indy 500

Kyle Larson qualified for the Indy 500 and earned a 21st-place starting position. But after IndyCar handed out penalties to two teams on Monday, Larson and the rest of the field were moved up two positions on the starting grid.

“I thought it was decent,” Larson said after Monday’s practice, per NASCAR.com. “Just trying to get a little racy at times to learn a little bit, but it’s so different in practice, I feel like more accordion opens up passing, where in the race, it’s a little more difficult to pass. It feels a little bit different than last year.”

Larson is set to become the fifth driver to compete in the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 on the same day (Sunday, May 25). He was looking to do it last year, but the weather prevented him from competing in NASCAR’s longest race of the year. Larson competed in last year’s Indy 500 and finished 18th.