Tony Kanaan has ironically competed in four Indy 500s since announcing his initial "Last Lap" tour back in 2020, with last year's being the only one in which he did not compete after giving fans a heartfelt goodbye in 2023.
But the fifth edition of the "Last Lap" tour could very well happen in 2025, depending on the weather at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 25.
Last year, Kyle Larson drove in the Indy 500 for Arrow McLaren through a partnership with his NASCAR Cup Series team, Hendrick Motorsports, and opted to remain at Indy when the race was delayed due to rain, thus causing him to miss the start of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Even had the Coca-Cola 600 not been shortened due to rain itself, and thus Larson had actually been able to turn laps after arriving at Charlotte following his 18th place finish at Indy, he had already given up the ability to score points, and he needed to be granted a playoff waiver to remain playoff eligible, even after two earlier wins had supposedly locked him into the postseason.
To avoid such drama, two things have happened since. First of all, NASCAR's playoff waiver rules have gotten much stricter, with any driver who misses a regular season race for a non-medical reason now ineligible to score any playoff points (plus the loss of any previously earned playoff points), and secondly, Larson has made the Coca-Cola 600 his priority.
It has been nearly 50 years since rain significantly impacted back-to-back editions of the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing", but each year is its own independent event. In other words, we no longer need two in a row to make it two in a row.
And if it does become two in a row, Larson will need a backup driver.
That decision has brought Kanaan, who now serves as Arrow McLaren's team principal out of retirement, as he is officially Larson's backup this year after last year's drama.
Kanaan did not run a veteran refresher test in the October session at the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway, Indiana oval, and while the NTT IndyCar Series is set to visit the "Racing Capital of the World" again for the two-day open test this Wednesday and Thursday, the 2013 Indy 500 winner won't be a part of that, either.
Instead, the 50-year-old Brazilian is set to wait until the official Indy 500 practice week begins in mid-May to officially establish himself as eligible to compete in the race's 109th running should Larson need to be replaced behind the wheel of the No. 17 Chevrolet.
Of course, the hope is that Larson can actually run the Memorial Day Double this year, unlike last year when he only actually got to compete at Indy. But IndyCar fans are still looking forward to savoring the fan-favorite Kanaan's return to the cockpit next month.
It marks two years in a row of Larson bringing a race car legend out of retirement for practice. Last year, Larson opted to remain at Indy for Indy 500 qualifying, so 2014 Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick drove the No. 5 Chevrolet in practice and qualifying for the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
With Larson again set to prioritize Indy 500 qualifying over qualifying for a NASCAR exhibition race in which he is still allowed to compete anyway, Justin Allgaier has been tipped to replace Larson this year, as Harvick will not be unretiring for a second time, and Larson's attempt to lure Carl Edwards out of retirement also came up short.