McLaren planning F1 test for American driver after 'better than Max Verstappen' claim
Former NASCAR champion Kyle Larson said he 'knows he's better' than Max Verstappen earlier this year and has held talks with McLaren CEO Zak Brown about an F1 test
After claiming that he is a "better all-around driver" than Max Verstappen, NASCAR driver Kyle Larson could get the chance to prove it.
Larson is one of the top drivers in the American racing series and signalled an intention to branch out into single-seater competition by competing in the Indianapolis 500 earlier this year. But he has never been behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car before.
That didn't stop him from boldly claiming earlier this year that he has more talent than triple F1 champion Verstappen. "I know in my mind I am better than him as an all-around driver," Larson said.
"There's no way [Verstappen] can get into a Sprint Car and win the Knoxville Nationals. There's no way he can go win the Chili Bowl. There's no way he can go win a Cup race at Bristol. There's probably no way I can go win a Formula 1 race at Monaco, but I think I'd have a better shot, just because of the car element.
"That's what gives me ease and confidence that, like, I know I'm better than him. Maybe not in an open-wheel IndyCar or Formula 1 car, but that's one discipline. I think I would beat him in everything else. You can quote that."
Larson made that Indy 500 appearance thanks to support from McLaren Racing chief Zak Brown. And the American has confirmed that he has also held talks with the NASCAR racer over a test outing in F1 machinery in the near future.
He told the Happy Hour podcast: "We've been chatting about it. Kyle, as you can imagine, definitely wants to do it in between our schedule, which goes from February to December, and NASCAR's schedule, which is February to November. I'd love to see Kyle in an F1 car. It is something that we've discussed and something I think will happen down the road."
That phrasing was echoed by Larson himself on a separate appearance on the same podcast, as he revealed that he had already missed out on one chance to put an F1 car through its paces. He said: "I would love to do it and it sounds like hopefully, I'll get to it down the road.
"I think it was an option this year, I just had so much going on. It's like something that I need to plan probably a year in advance or more. I would like to but, honestly, I would rather do it on one of those open test-style deals like after Abu Dhabi when other drivers are on the track, too.
"I think that driver swaps are really cool, but you don't have like a bar. You don't have a gauge of where you stack up to others who do it. It would be fun to do that with Oscar [Piastri] or Lando [Norris] or whoever, but I would love to strap in with 19 other cars out there and see where you're at on the speed charts."
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