Larson’s Indy Double And The Most Important Backup Driver In America

Last year, it was Kevin Harvick who handed over the keys. This year, it’s Justin Allgaier’s turn.

Because Kyle Larson — reigning NASCAR Cup Series chaos agent, dirt track demigod, and newly minted Kansas winner — has officially launched his double-duty quest: the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600, back-to-back, on the same day.

Larson’s week began with a commanding Cup win at Kansas Speedway, but by Tuesday he was already in Indiana, turning laps at Indianapolis Motor Speedway during a two-day open test in preparation for The Greatest Spectacle in Racing. It’s IndyCar’s biggest show, and Larson is treating it like it matters — which it does. Hugely.

But before that, NASCAR has a bit of theatre of its own — the All-Star Race, this Sunday night under the lights at North Wilkesboro Speedway. The race has no points on the line, but it does offer a fat check, a shiny trophy, and the kind of bragging rights that drivers love and team owners pretend not to care about.

Because of the Indy commitment, Larson won’t be spending much of the weekend in North Carolina. Instead, just like last year, Hendrick Motorsports has called in a relief driver. Enter Justin Allgaier — the reigning Xfinity Series champ, journeyman Cup veteran, Chevrolet test driver, and perhaps the most important insurance policy in stock car racing this month.

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“We’re fortunate to have Justin and we appreciate him stepping in to help,” said Cliff Daniels, Larson’s crew chief. “He and Kyle are very similar in size, so there’s a lot in the cockpit that’s common between the two.”

Translation: we don’t have to re-engineer the entire car just to fit him in it, which is a rare and underrated luxury in this sport.

Allgaier isn’t new to the Cup scene. He’s made 83 starts at the top level, most recently in this year’s Daytona 500 — where he put a JR Motorsports entry in ninth place. He also logs test laps in Chevrolet’s wheel-force cars, which are basically rolling data labs. So he’s fast, smart, and knows how to keep a car out of the wall, which is all Hendrick is asking him to do on Friday.

The job description? Handle Friday practice and qualifying. And then? Wait.

Larson, last year, made the Fast Six in Indy 500 qualifying — that final group of cars who battle for pole. He ended up starting fifth. NASCAR even bumped the North Wilkesboro start time ahead by 30 minutes just to make sure he could land, run, and drive. He did. He finished fourth. It was all very impressive. But it was also deeply stressful.

This year, things are trickier. IndyCar moved its qualifying session an hour later. So if Larson makes the Fast Six again, he’ll be forced to bail early — skipping the final round in order to jump on a plane and get to North Carolina in time for the All-Star Race.

“Hopefully we run into that predicament, because that means our car’s fast,” Larson said Tuesday at Indy.

Indeed. But it also means Allgaier may need to keep his helmet nearby. Just in case.

The hope is he won’t be needed Sunday night. But he’ll still be standing by next week in Charlotte, just in case the weather throws another tantrum — which, as we all learned last year, it absolutely can.

Rain delayed the 2024 Indy 500. Larson waited. Then he ran it — and ran it well — before a pit road speeding penalty dropped him to 18th. Still, he earned Indy 500 Rookie of the Year honors, which is no small feat.

But while the champagne flowed at Indy, Charlotte got soaked. The Coca-Cola 600 was rain-delayed, then rain-shortened. Allgaier started the race in the No. 5. Larson arrived from Indy, ready to hop in — but never turned a lap.

Cue the awkward phone calls, social media meltdowns, and a very noticeable silence from NASCAR.

Eventually, after what felt like weeks of political theatre, NASCAR did hand Larson a Playoff waiver. But this year, things are…different.

In January, NASCAR changed the rules — as it can, since it owns the sandbox. Now, Playoff waivers still exist, but they come with strings. A driver can miss a race for injury, the birth of a child, or for something extraordinary — but if it’s for something like Larson pulled off last year and they do get a waiver, they lose all the Playoff points they’ve earned.

And Larson? He’s got 23 Playoff points already, more than anyone else. Losing them would be a competitive gut punch. So the stakes are higher. And the plan this time is clear: put NASCAR first.

If Mother Nature behaves, everything works. Larson runs all 1,100 miles. He becomes the first driver since Tony Stewart in 2001 to complete every lap of both races. It would be historic.

But if the skies darken — or if something goes sideways — Allgaier may once again become the most important backup in the business.

No one wants to see him race. Which, ironically, makes him the most valuable man in the garage.