Kevin Harvick calls for Kyle Larson to cease attempting to complete Indy-Charlotte Double

“At this point, he just needs to focus on the NASCAR side of it,” Harvick said on Tuesday’s Happy Hour podcast. “I think if he went to IndyCar and just ran the IndyCar schedule full-time, he’d go over there and be fine. It’s great that he can do it, but I think it took away from the NASCAR side of it this week with the circumstances. If they would have went like they did last year, I think he would have been confident.

“But even the best, when the confidence gets knocked down and you know you want to do great things, you can mentally talk yourself into doing things you shouldn’t and step over that line. I’m happy that he did it. I think it was great for racing. I hope it’s the last time.”

In both attempts, a combination of weather and Larson’s own mistakes have prevented him from becoming just the second driver to complete the Double. This year’s attempt started on the wrong foot, as Larson crashed twice in practice. Then, Larson crashed out of the Indianapolis 500 on Lap 91.

Even if he would have continued on in the race, he would have had to leave early to make it in time for the start of Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Larson started second in the Coca-Cola 600 and looked to have a strong car. Leading the race on Lap 42, Larson spun out on his own. He was involved in the Lap 245 caution, ending his race for good. Nothing went as planned for Larson. It’s why he’s unsure about another Double attempt.

Kyle Larson gives visceral response to future Indy 500, Coke 600 double attempt

“I don’t know,” Larson said. “It’s so fresh right now I don’t really have a good answer for you. The Double is just a tough undertaking. The window of time is too tight. Even if I didn’t wreck, I don’t think I would have made it here on time and probably would have had to end that race short anyways.

“So, I don’t really think it’s worth it. But I would love to run the Indy 500 again. Just doing the Double I think is just logistically too tough.”

Ultimately, Harvick feels that Larson’s confidence took a hit. Harvick also said the conditions at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday made the task even more difficult.

“I think that last year, the cars were a lot easier to drive. He wrecked three times this year in the Indy car,” Harvick said. “I think he came back to the 600 wanting to just absolutely smash the field and I think he stepped over the limit a couple times and got himself in trouble just wanting to rebound and show everybody from the Indy 500 a scenario that he was the man. He’s still the man, but even the guys like Kyle Larson can be affected by that confidence piece that goes with the driving, how you think, the process that you go through.

“I think that last year was great. This year, he had a lot of trouble with the car. A lot of guys had a lot of trouble with the car with how hard it was to drive. Tough conditions with the cool temperatures and chaos on the restarts. They had a lot of trouble passing at Indy, you saw those two lap cars at the end of the race the leader couldn’t even pass.”