NASCAR Driver Justin Haley Isn't Interested In Doing The Coolest Thing In Racing, But He Has A Good Reason
I'd argue that there's no cooler feat in racing than pulling double duty and competing in the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day. Wheeling around in an IndyCar to then hop in a private jet like you're John Kerry or Taylor Swift to Charlotte to do 600 miles in a stock car, all within 24 hours is incredible.
So then why the hell, when he says he has had multiple offers to do it, does NASCAR driver Justin Haley have no interest in doing the double?
Kyle Larson will be doing it this year when he hops in the cockpit for McLaren, and reigning Cup Series champ Ryan Blaney has expressed some interest in doing it too.
As for Haley? Not so much.
Haley — who will drive for Rick Ware Racing this season — was asked about hopping in a car for the team's IndyCar program, which they run in conjunction with Dale Coyne Racing. As an Indiana native, that seems like a natural move, but Haley said otherwise.
"No," Haley said, per Motorsport.com. "I’ve actually turned down one or two Indy 500 rides, which is surprising. I don’t feel like I’m quite ready for it yet, but I had an opportunity to run it a few years back and then I think one other time, so I don’t know – not quite yet. I’m not quite to the point in my career where I feel like that’s something I want to tackle."\
Justin Haley wants to keep his focus on the NASCAR Cup Series before potentially trying his hand at the Indianapolis 500. (© Luke Johnson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Haley Wants To Focus On The Cup Series Before Giving Indy A Try
Haley has one Cup Series win to his credit, which is more than a lot of drivers ever end up with, however you can see his point.
Let's look at Larson and Blaney. Both had Cup Series championships on their resume before doing the double came up.
Same goes for the last driver to pull off a double, Busch, who had a championship to his name before attempting the feat in 2014.
Perhaps that's why for the time being Haley wants to keep his focus on the Cup Series before attempting the Indianapolis 500.
"Obviously, it would be fun being from Indiana and growing up and watching the Indy 500, but I don’t know. I just feel like I want to focus on what I’m doing right now. I don’t need to venture too far off," he said. "I feel like the guys later in their career want to go do fun stuff like that, but for me it’s just kind of all focus on the Cup Series."
Y'know what? As cool as pulling off the double is… that's a good way of looking at it.
Maybe someday we'll see Haley give it a try. Especially considering that it sounds like he has had no shortage of offers.