IndyCar: Kyle Larson drops slightly before Indy 500 practice starts

Kyle Larson's odds to win the Indy 500 in what is slated to be his first ever IndyCar start have shifted drastically from the time they were first release a few months ago until now.

When DraftKings Sportsbook first released the odds, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, who is attempting to become just the fifth driver to run the Memorial Day Double by competing in both the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on the same day, was listed behind 12 drivers at +2500.

Following his runner-up finish on the speed chart in last month's Indianapolis open test, he ascended to as high as second, which is where he started today behind only Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou. Now, however, he has switched spots with Arrow McLaren teammate Pato O'Ward.

Kyle Larson drops slightly before Indy 500 practice

Palou, the 2021 Indy 500 runner-up, is still listed as the favorite at +400 following another dominant win on the Indianapolis road course this past weekend.

Last year, he won the road course race and then proceeded to take the pole position for the Indy 500 with an all-time record pole speed of 234.217 miles per hour during his four-lap qualifying attempt around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway, Indiana oval. A pit road incident knocked him back to 30th place, but he still rallied to finish in fourth.

O'Ward, the 2022 Indy 500 runner-up and leader of the most laps last year, was listed at +700 behind Larson at +650. Now, however, O'Ward is listed at +650, with Larson falling just behind at +700.

Reigning race winner Josef Newgarden of Team Penske is listed fourth at +900. Newgarden topped the speed chart in the April open test.

Full Indy 500 race-winning odds can be found here.

It is worth noting that the Indy 500 favorite has not won the race since 2009, when Helio Castroneves won it as a co-favorite with then-reigning winner Scott Dixon, who was the favorite when he won it in 2008.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Practice for the 108th running of the Indy 500 is scheduled to begin later this morning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Practice sessions are scheduled from 11:00 a.m. ET to 6:00 p.m. ET every day the rest of the week. Qualifying is scheduled to take place on Saturday, May 18 and Sunday, May 19, and the race itself is set to be shown live on NBC beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 26.