Allgaier to serve as Larson backup driver

Hendrick Motorsports confirmed Wednesday that Justin Allgaier will be the backup driver for Kyle Larson as he splits his time this week and next between Indianapolis and Charlotte.

“We’re fortunate to have Justin and we appreciate him stepping in to help,” said Cliff Daniels, crew chief for the No. 5 team. “He and Kyle are very similar in size, so there’s a lot in the cockpit that’s common between the two.

“I think that serves him well and it serves us well. He’s had some time in the simulator driving the track and he did the wheel-force test there a year ago, so he’s got some experience in the Cup car at North Wilkesboro. We’re looking to put in a solid practice and make sure the car drives good.”

Allgaier will practice and qualify the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsport Chevrolet this weekend at North Wilkesboro Speedway for the NASCAR All-Star Race. Cup Series teams will be on track Friday for practice and qualifying and Saturday for the heat races.

Larson will be in Indianapolis with Arrow McLaren for Indianapolis 500 practice and qualifying. Sunday, he is scheduled to leave Indianapolis after making his qualifying run and return to North Wilkesboro to run the All-Star Race.

However, if Larson were not to make it to North Wilkesboro for the All-Star Race, his team will not compete. Allgaier is not eligible to run the All-Star Race, which is the same position Kevin Harvick was in last year when he served as Larson’s backup driver. The eligibility for the race includes that a driver must be full-time in the series.

“I think no matter what there’s going to be a general progression of balance from Friday through Sunday,” Daniels said. “The track is going to take more rubber. Friday, the groove is going to be a bit more narrow and Sunday I think it’s going to open up a bit. So, there’s still some changes regardless of Justin or Kyle that we would plan to progress through throughout the weekend.

“At the end of the day, I just want to make sure Justin is comfortable in what he feels and he, of course, trusts the feedback he’s going to give us. If there’s something he can provide to us to make the car faster, we’re going to listen. We’re going to do those little things and then we’re going to kind of stick to a little bit of what we think the track is going to evolve through, throughout the weekend.”

Larson will drop to the rear for the start of the All-Star Race because Allgaier will qualify the car. He won the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro in 2023.

Allgaier will also be the backup driver for Larson during Coca-Cola 600 weekend. He drove the car in the race last year when Larson stayed in Indianapolis to compete in the Indianapolis 500 after it was delayed by rain, and then never got into his stock car when the same weather cell brought an early end to the NASCAR event.