INDIA PARK – Kyle Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series winner, had a bit of a nightmare when he realized his dream of competing in the Indianapolis 500.

Weather spoiled Larson’s opportunity to finish the “Hendrick 1100” and become the first driver since Kurt Busch in 2014 to compete in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.

However, the weather forecast was uncooperative. The race scheduled for 12:45 p.m. was postponed for four hours due to a lightning storm and heavy rain that struck the Indianapolis Motor Speedway after 11 a.m. ET.

Larson’s first Indianapolis 500 attempt had taken so much preparation that it was given top priority for the day. Owner of the NASCAR team Rick Hendrick and Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon concurred since they had devoted a great deal of time, energy, and money to Larson’s Indy endeavor.

In other words, Larson would not start the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway when he made the decision to start the rain-delayed Indianapolis 500.

Justin Allgaier would be driving Larson’s stock car in the 400-lap NASCAR marathon, rather than starting the No. 5 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet.

At the Indianapolis 500 Victory Celebration on Monday night, Larson told NBCSports.com that he was overcome with guilt rather than being overjoyed to be racing in his first Indianapolis 500.

He believed that he was betraying not only his ardent following of supporters but also the entire Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR team.

Up until race day, everything was going smoothly, Larson said to NBCSports.com. That is what depresses me a little.

“The race day was awful. Sincerely, yesterday was awful. Nothing about it really appealed to me.

“Hopefully, we can enjoy participating in both races when we get to do it again someday.”

There’s a reason why so few drivers have attempted to compete on the same day in two of the world’s biggest races. The Indianapolis 500 boasts a century and more of history and tradition, and it is well-known globally.

One of the biggest races in NASCAR’s calendar, the Coca-Cola 600 takes place in Charlotte, North Carolina, the epicenter of the sport.

“It’s challenging, and I believe it would be simpler to handle if it was just a typical race day with typical activities,” Larson remarked. However, it’s difficult to move on when you have two major events and one that affects your season. But I’m appreciative of the chance. I’m appreciative that I even got the chance to attempt it.

“I only wish the weather had cooperated.”

“I just prayed that we would get an additional hour of rain, and it worked out that way,”

Larson thinks that had it rained in Indianapolis for an additional hour, the Indy 500 would have been postponed until Monday. After that, he would have left to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 over the whole distance and come back to Indianapolis to run the Memorial Day 500-Mile Race.

However, every attempt must be made to hold the Indianapolis 500 on its scheduled date, given the 347,000 spectators crammed into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. If not, a large number of the fans would have to depart inconsolably, having missed their biggest day of the year, for which they have paid a great deal of money to attend.

By making the decision to complete in the Indy 500 even with a four-hour delay to the start of the race, Larson couldn’t escape the overwhelming feeling of guilt.

“I don’t know if I ever quite fully got in the correct mindset,” Larson admitted to NBCSports.com. “I feel like I had a lot of weight on me and a lot of guilt of not being able to be in two places at one time.

“I just was never in the right mindset. I didn’t enjoy anything about yesterday.”

Not even the pre-race ceremonies, the drama, Rick Hendrick, Jeff Gordon, all the major executives from the team that were there and all the photos with the VIPs at his car that were taken on the starting grid in the moments before the race, could remove that dreaded feeling that was inside Larson’s soul.

“I just felt like we were all in a lose-lose situation with the weather and all that,” Larson said. “So, I’m really hopeful that, everybody there a part of it had a good time.

“Even though it’s the biggest race in the world, it’s hard to fully enjoy it when you know you’re going to miss another one.

While Larson was feeling guilty, Gordon was feeling giddy.

As he walked on the starting grid to Larson’s car before the Indy 500, he told NBCSports.com that he had “goosebumps.”

“This is so cool and so emotional, and I know it’s going to be even more emotional once the pre-race ceremonies start,” Gordon said. “I’ve had goosebumps being at the Indianapolis 500 on race day and I know there are more to come.”