Kyle Larson reveals new reason for crash at Indy 500 test: "I was a big part of the mistake"

Kyle Larson has shared a new finding about what caused his crash at the Indy 500 open test. On Thursday, April 24, day two of the test, the former NASCAR champion had understeer on his No. 17 Arrow McLaren Chevy going into Turn 1, locked up his tires, and drove into the wall.

The medical team checked and cleared him after the crash. However, with his Arrow McLaren car damaged, Larson had to cut his test short and leave for his home in North Carolina by noon. On a recent episode of the Pit Pass Indy podcast, he revealed how the understeer was induced by his failing to maneuver the weight jackers on his car going into Turn 1.

When host Bruce Martin asked Kyle Larson how early he knew that the crash was inevitable, he replied [8:04 onwards]:

"Pretty early (laughs)... on turn into the corner. But after, you're looking at it and thinking about it more, they run this like DRS weight jacker thing. I hit the button to engage it, disengage it, whatever you wanna call it, off in Turn 4, and then I forgot to hit the button to reset it before turning into Turn 1. So no surprise that I had the understeer that I had. So that makes me more bummed that I was a big part of the mistake."

When the weight jacker is extended, it reduces understeer on the car, and when retracted, it can reduce oversteer or induce some understeer. Kyle Larson seemingly left it retracted coming out of Turn 4 and going into Turn 1, causing the understeer and eventual crash.

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Kyle Larson unfazed by the possibility of the 2025 Indy 500 being his last

Kyle Larson drives his No. 17 Chevy at the 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500 - Source: Getty

Kyle Larson's second attempt at the Indy 500 is part of his bigger goal of completing The Double, i.e., completing 1100 miles of racing at the Indy 500 and NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600. This second attempt in 2025 could be his last.

Speaking about how he felt about this possibility on the aforementioned podcast, Larson said [12:30 onwards]:

"I don't know. I mean I don't really think about it a lot. I race a lot. It's not like I'm retiring from racing. So it doesn't feel like a big deal to me that this could be the last one ever or that (it could be the) last one for a while. So just the same as last year. Trying to enjoy the atmosphere, and there's no event like the Indy 500 and what you feel here every single day in May."

The Hendrick Motorsports driver also explained how he'd never run the Indy 500 again if he won it this year. In 2024, Larson impressed in qualifying, earning a P5 starting position for the race. However, using the wrong gear on a restart and a drive-through penalty for speeding on pit road meant he finished in P18.