The second day of the Indy 500 open test was eventful was the teams reached high speeds, and it led to two crashes in the process, full report and results below.
Kyle Larson finds the wall
NASCAR driver Kyle Larson is attempting the double once again in 2025 but it all went wrong in the morning during the second day of the Indy 500 open test. He got too high as he tackled turn 1 and crunched the wall, breaking his right front suspension as he eventually came to a stop at turn 2 with his steering completely broken.
Two-time Indy 500 champion Takuma Sato also crashes
Following Larson’s crash, RLL’s Takuma Sato joined him in visiting the wall. Although no footage caught the initial impact, the Japanese driver looked to have lost the car in turn 1, ending up down at turn 2 like the McLaren driver. The impact came in at 94G. While the car was heavily damaged, thankfully Sato was alright.
The positives for Sato
RLL have struggled massively as a group at the Indy 500 in recent years. However, they can take huge encouragement from the open test. Although the Japanese driver crashed on day two, he was the fastest driver at the test in the non-tow category. He was over a mile per hour quicker than Kyle Kirkwood, with Scott McLaughlin over 2mph back as Honda-powered cars locked out five of the top six spots on this chart.
McLaughlin fastest using the boost in the Indy 500 open test
However, it was Scott McLaughlin who led the way on the overall charts as the Kiwi flew one everyone had access to the boost in the opening session of day 2. The New Zealander was on pole last year as he aims to do it again in 2025, as well as winning the race for the first time.
Sato’s non-tow time was good enough for P2 overall, with Power, Rosenqvist, Palou, Dixon, Kirkwood, Herta, Newgarden and Simpson rounding out the top 10. Team Penske, Andretti and Chip Ganassi Racing all looked very strong, with Sato (RLL) and Rosenqvist (MSR) joining them in the top 10.
McLaren had a relatively low-key test as Pato O’Ward looks to shake the runner-up tag and get his first win at the Indy 500 this year. He was P14, with Christian Lundgaard and Nolan Siegel placing 22nd and 34th in the other cars.
Former Indy 500 winners Alex Rossi and Ryan Hunter-Reay finished up 15th and 27th.
Full field results
