4 Burning Questions: How Will Kyle Larson Fare in the Memorial Day Double?

Can Kyle Larson complete the Double?

The Kyle Larson attempt at completing the 1,100 miles and finishing both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 remains a main focus for many.

While his attempt feels like it doesn’t have the same hype surrounding it this year – especially with other stories taking over on the NTT IndyCar Series side – it still is a major deal after the 2024 attempt was ruined.

Weather remains the first and possibly biggest obstacle to Larson completing the full task. The Weather Channel expects a dry race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with a slight chance of rain making its way to the track. 

Meanwhile, in Charlotte, local meteorologist Brad Panovich feels optimistic about getting the full Coke 600 race in as well.

Still very good optimism and chance of a full #CocaCola600 tomorrow, the rain looks to stay very isolated and away from the track between 6pm-11pm. #nascar #cltwx #wcnc #ncwx pic.twitter.com/vPOcvj31lk

— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) May 24, 2025

If all goes according to plan, Larson’s biggest hurdle as a driver will be finishing the Indy 500. The driver of the IndyCar No. 17 has already crashed twice at the track in the month of May.

Kyle Larson goes around and into the wall at #Indy500 practice. pic.twitter.com/UjkHctURKk

— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) May 16, 2025

Running alone has been a challenge for many in the field, as there have been multiple drivers crashing, even going airborne, in the last few weeks as well.

Putting a full field of 33 cars onto the track will create even more turbulence in the air, putting the cars back in the field even more on edge. Larson will start 19th, meaning he will be dealing with quite a bit of dirty air in front of him while trying to hold off a dozen hungry drivers behind.

On the NASCAR side, there is much less concern. As long as he doesn’t cause himself more trouble, Larson should complete all 600 miles at Charlotte. He may even be the one to beat at the end of the 400 laps.

The No. 5 Chevrolet will start second, and Larson has far and away been the best driver on 1.5-mile tracks in the Next Gen era. 

If weather stays away and Larson completes the Indy 500, he will be primed to add his name to the list of drivers who have completed the Memorial Day Double.

What should stage lengths be for the Coke 600?

Since stage racing began in 2017, the way races are divided up has changed a little. One place where the stage lengths and philosophy have remained the same, though, is at Charlotte Motor Speedway during the Coke 600.

At the start of stage racing, most races were split into three mostly even segments, with the first two having the same number of laps and the third stage being the longest of the three. Often, the first two stages would add up to be the first half to two-thirds of the race before the final stage sets up the run to the finish.

The 600-mile race at Charlotte provided an opportunity to do something a little different. Rather than having a super-long final stage, there is an extra stage added to the race, splitting it into four even segments of 100 laps each.

In the years since, stage racing philosophies have slightly changed. More and more races have the first stage run shorter than the second stage. The final run to the finish is still the longest of the race.

At Charlotte, all four segments are still the same length. As aesthetically pleasing as it is to have four even segments, the Coke 600 really needs a reevaluation of its stage lengths.

Racing for 400 laps should have an aspect of endurance and strategy to it. Instead, the caution breaks are perfectly timed, and each stage is run the exact same way by all of the teams. 

Four 100-lap segments have become stagnant and mundane. It adds a unique feature – an extra opportunity to gain more points. But it takes away the most unique feature, which is the endurance it takes for driver, team and machine to complete the longest race of the year.

The solution is fairly easy for this one: take the third stage break away, keeping the other stage ends at 100, 200 and 400 laps. Heck, even make the first stage 50 laps long, the second stage 100 and the third stage 250. 

The Coke 600 should be the most testing race for the drivers. Instead, it feels the most processional and formulaic. It’s time to test the endurance of the drivers.

How will Corey Day fare in the remainder of his NASCAR Xfinity Series races for Hendrick Motorsports?

When the Xfinity Series returned to action after its two-week hiatus, William Byron took home the win at Charlotte for Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 17 Chevrolet. Both Byron and Larson have raced the car twice, and each won once.

Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman also made starts, both finishing second. 

From here on out, though (barring any schedule additions), the No. 17 will be piloted by Corey Day. So far this season, Day also has two starts, but his stats are nowhere near the Cup drivers in their attempts.

The No. 17 has raced eight times in 2025 with two wins. The car paced the field for 532 laps. Larson led 408 in two races, Byron 74 in two races and Bowman 50 in one.

The worst finish for the Cup drivers was when Larson finished fourth after dominating at Homestead. The team has three second-place finishes, and it has won the last two times a Cup driver has driven the car.

Meanwhile, Day has two starts as well, but he finished 21st at Martinsville Speedway and 16th at Texas Motor Speedway. Day’s stock car experience hasn’t been the best this season across all levels, either. He’s raced in five Truck events with a best finish of 15th on two occasions. The other three finishes are outside of the top 20. 

This shouldn’t be an indictment of Day. He comes from a dirt background, and getting used to racing stock cars is quite the adjustment. However, expectations are high for the 19-year-old because he has an endorsement from Larson. That connection, of course, brings with it comparisons and assumptions that Day should go out and dominate like Larson.

It might be fair to call Day’s debut disappointing in these early races. At the same time, these races are here for Day to learn, make mistakes, learn some more and improve his skills and race craft.

Day has run well at times in his two races so far, but he just doesn’t have the finishes to show for it.

It’s unfair to expect Day to have Cup-level speed from day one, but he has an opportunity to learn in a fast car to see if he can close the gap to the top Xfinity drivers – and to his Cup teammates.

During the race on Saturday, the broadcast mentioned how crew chief Adam Wall and the No. 17 team know that they have the speed dialed in. Now it’s time to see what they can do with Day.

Can Katherine Legge turn her NASCAR luck around?

It’s been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad endeavor for Katherine Legge in her 2025 NASCAR campaign. After the mistakes in the Cup race led to extra scrutiny, her Xfinity starts haven’t gone much better.

Legge did not qualify the No. 32 at Rockingham Speedway, and she sort of had a hand in causing the pileup that took out some top contenders in that race. 

Since then, however, Legge has kept things clean from her end. It’s just that she can’t seem to avoid the bad luck bug. 

Legge has been involved in an accident in all five of her NASCAR starts this year (and her one ARCA Menards Series start), and she did not finish in four of the five. In the last three races, however, she has just been an innocent bystander to someone else not holding their line.

In 2025, Legge has not had a finish better than 32nd at Texas. However, you have to remember that Legge has Xfinity experience that goes well past this year. In 2018, Legge ran four races in the series, and she ran another in 2023. Her best Xfinity finish of 14th came at Road America in 2018 when she drove for JD Motorsports.

It’s truly been a rough year for Legge as she is trying to learn more about oval racing. She has plenty more starts on ovals left in the Xfinity Series, and maybe she’ll be around at the end of some to finally post a finish that shows where she was running.

Meanwhile, keep an eye out for Legge when she makes her return to the Cup Series. Those starts are coming on road courses, and given her road racing experience, she may be able to be a little more competitive.