After finishing fifth in NASCAR’s preseason exhibition at the Los Angeles Coliseum this past Saturday night, Larson is making the trek to the one-mile, low-banked tri-oval as part of preparations for his first attempt at the Indianapolis 500 in May.
He will drive Arrow McLaren’s No. 17 Chevrolet-powered entry in partnership with Hendrick Motorsports.
The outing is considered as a rookie evaluation for the team and not an IndyCar Series test. A representative with Arrow McLaren confirmed to Motorsport.com that every team member working with Larson at the upcoming is the exact group assigned for his Indy 500 program. The lone participant who will not be in attendance is veteran race engineer Mike Pawlowski, who was recently signed for the one-off effort and holds previous stints at AJ Foyt Racing, Andretti Global and Chip Ganassi Racing, among others.
Tony Kanaanthe 2013 Indy 500 winner who now serves as the Sporting Director for Arrow McLaren, will be on hand to help Larson with coaching and feedback.
It is understood that should the threat of rain potentially impact the test on Tuesday, there are no plans to make it up with on-track running the following day. The only other on-track running planned for Larson at this time is the Indy 500 Open Test in April 10-11.
The 31-year-old California native last drove an Indy car in October as part of the Rookie Orientation Program at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he completed all three phases in 72 laps with a fastest at 217.898 mph.
“I’ve got a couple of tests coming up here if the rainstorm doesn’t hit too hard,” Larson said.
“I’m supposed to test Tuesday in Phoenix, and I think there is an open test in April. I would say once April rolls around, I’d say that’s when it’ll get hot and heavy on prep work. I’m so used to being busy, so I don’t think it’s really going to feel way different for me.
“Just more studying and stuff behind the screen of a computer. It should be okay, I think. Our Cup team, hopefully, will be in a good spot where we’re fast and all of that.
“You’re not stressed about that as much as you need to, but I want to do a good job, so it’s definitely going to take a lot of focus on the IndyCar side to do a good job.
“I’m confident that I’m going to get all of the data and information to study with, and all of these extra laps will help me come the month of May and will help it all go smooth.”
Larson is vying to become the first driver since Kurt Busch in 2014 to attempt the ‘Memorial Day Weekend Double’, which consists of competing in the Indy 500 and 600-mile Cup race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on the same day.
The late John Andretti was the first to attempt it in 1994, and has since been followed by Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon and most recently Kurt Busch in 2014.
Stewart delivered the most successful run in 2001, when he finished sixth at Indianapolis and third at Charlotte.
(Note: This story was updated with the name of the Indy 500 race engineer for Larson.)
