Hendrick Motorsports names Justin Allgaier as Kyle Larson replacement driver for All-Star practice and qualifying

With Kyle Larson preparing to run the 2025 Indy 500, Justin Allgaier will pilot the No. 5 Chevrolet for practice and qualifying ahead of Sunday’s NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Larson will be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for testing and qualifying.

All-Star practice and qualifying takes place Friday. As was the case last year when Kevin Harvick drove the car, Allgaier will not be eligible to take part in the race itself. If Larson can’t make it back to North Wilkesboro in time for the race, the No. 5 team will not compete.

While not having Larson is less than ideal, fortunately for Hendrick Motorsports, there’s plenty of familiarity with Allgaier. Larson attempted the Indy-Charlotte Double last year. The Indy 500 started late due to weather, forcing NASCAR to start the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway without Larson. Allgaier drove the car for the full 249 laps of the rain-shortened race, finishing 13th.

Larson made it to the racetrack just before the rain but never got to complete a single lap. Nonetheless, the experience for Allgaier should help him this time around.

“We’re fortunate to have Justin and we appreciate him stepping in to help,” said Cliff Daniels, crew chief for the No. 5 team. “He and Kyle are very similar in size, so there’s a lot in the cockpit that’s common between the two.”

Justin Allgaier earns opportunity to run laps at North Wilkesboro

Allgaier, who drives the No. 7 car for JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series, is the series’ reigning champion. The 38-year-old is off to a hot start in 2025, atop the points standings with two wins and eight top 5s in 12 starts. Allgaier has led a series-high 434 laps. He ran the Daytona 500 this year in JRM’s No. 40 entry, bringing the car across the start/finish line P9.

North Wilkesboro is obviously a far different track than Charlotte or Daytona. The 0.625-mile short track will be challenging, and communication will be key, Daniels said.

“I think no matter what there’s going to be a general progression of balance from Friday through Sunday,” Daniels said. “The track is going to take more rubber. Friday, the groove is going to be a bit more narrow and Sunday I think it’s going to open up a bit. So, there’s still some changes regardless of Justin or Kyle that we would plan to progress through throughout the weekend.

“At the end of the day, I just want to make sure Justin is comfortable in what he feels and he, of course, trusts the feedback he’s going to give us. If there’s something he can provide to us to make the car faster, we’re going to listen. We’re going to do those little things and then we’re going to kind of stick to a little bit of what we think the track is going to evolve through, throughout the weekend.”