Kurt Busch and Andretti Autosport announced today that he "will try to become the first driver in 10 years to run the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day," according to Jenna Fryer of the AP. If Busch qualifies for the Indy 500, he "will then fly to Charlotte Motor Speedway to fulfill his full-time job with Stewart-Haas Racing in NASCAR's longest event of the year." Fryer notes only drivers John Andretti, Tony Stewart and Robby Gordon "have attempted the grueling, 1,100-mile 'double,' and no driver has tried since Gordon" in '04. Stewart "is the only driver to complete all 1,100 miles." Andretti "will unveil the car and primary sponsor for Busch at a later date." Busch "will bring at least two personal sponsors." Cessna has "signed on to help with his transportation" between Indianapolis and Charlotte. Busch estimated that it will "require at least 20 hours of flight time shuttling him back and forth between both series." He also has "teamed with Basis, a wrist-based health tracker ... to help with his training leading up to the double" (AP, 3/4). Busch said, "I've done road course stuff. I've done dirt tracks. I've done drag racing, sports cars, stock cars, trucks, Nationwide all the good stuff in motorsports. I think this is the last item on a complete list." RACER.com's Lee Spencer notes with team Owner Michael Andretti's "pedigree in IndyCar, Busch has a solid opportunity to make his open-wheel debut with a championship organization." IndyCar President of Competition & Operations Derrick Walker at IndyCar Media Day in February said that he "believed Busch's participation could trigger a trend" (RACER.com, 3/4).
