Round 6: The 107th running of the Indianapolis 500. May 16 - 28.
With the first practice session starting today, it's time to get the thread for the 107th running of the Indianapolis 500 underway.
Last year there were some doubts as to whether there would be a field of 33 cars for the 106th running of the race, something that has been a feature of the Indy 500 since 1934.
The last time the race had fewer than 33 cars, was back in 1947 when 30 cars took part. There were two other occasions when the race didn't have 33 cars and that was in 1979 and 1997, when the field was increased to 35 cars. The 33rd place for the 106th running was eventually filled, as Cusick Motorsports in partnership with DragonSpeed announced they were entering the race with Stefan Wilson driving.
This year there are 34 confirmed entries, with bumping returning.
There are 9 former winners, 3 of whom are multiple winners, plus there are 4 Rookie drivers.
From 2014 to 2022, double points were awarded but this year it will standard race points.
Bonus points awarded during qualifying remain unchanged from 2022.
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Qualifications:
The two-day format that has been in place since 2019 will be used again, though in 2022 the Fast 9 was replaced with the Top 12.
Drivers will draw their spot for the initial qualifying order on Friday evening, with full field qualifying starting on Saturday 20, at 11:00 am through to 5:50 pm.
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Day 1. Saturday 20
11:00 am - 5:50 pm: Full Field Qualifying - Live on Peacock and from 2:30-4:30 pm on NBC
Qualifying will take place for positions 1-30.
Cars 1-12 will advance to the Top 12 Qualifying round on Sunday.
Positions 13-30 will be set, and those drivers will not re-qualify Sunday.
When every car in the qualifying order for Saturday has been presented with at least one chance to qualify, teams may choose from two lanes for second and subsequent attempts.
Lane 1 is the priority lane. Cars in this lane get priority access to the track ahead of Lane 2. However, cars in
this lane must withdraw their qualified time.
Lane 2 is for cars that have already qualified, but wish to try and improve their position.
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Day 2. Sunday 21
2:00 pm - 3:00 p.m.: Top 12 Qualifying - Live on Peacock
Positions 7-12 will be determined.
The order is based on Saturday times, slowest to fastest.
Each car is guaranteed one attempt.
The fastest six advance to the Firestone Fast Six to determine positions 1- 6.
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4:00 pm - 5:00 pm: Last Chance Qualifying - Live on NBC and Peacock
Positions 31-33 will be determined.
Each car is guaranteed one attempt and may make multiple attempts until time expires. Each car’s most recent qualification speed will remain eligible for the starting lineup until the time is withdrawn or qualifications end.
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5:15pm - 5:45 pm: Firestone Fast Six - Live on NBC and Peacock
Positions 1- 6 will be determined.
The order is based on times from the Top 12 Qualifying earlier on Sunday, slowest to fastest. Each car is guaranteed one attempt. The fastest driver in the Firestone Fast Six will take pole.
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History
Indianapolis Motor Speedway is one of the world's oldest, purpose-built tracks that is still in use. In 1905 Indiana businessman Carl G. Fisher, envisioned building a circuit after watching some of the world's earliest car races in France. He felt Europe had the upper hand in car design and thought one reason was the lack of permanent testing facilities for American car manufacturers. After another visit to Europe and seeing the banked oval at Brooklands, England, he decided to build his own track.
Fisher convinced local businessmen James A. Allison, Arthur Newby and Frank W. Wheeler to join him in purchasing Pressley Farm, five miles outside of Indianapolis and totaling 328 acres for about $72,000. On March 20, 1909, The Indianapolis Motor Speedway company was incorporated and construction began that month.
The track surface consisted of packed soil covered by two inches of gravel, two inches of limestone covered with a solution of tar and oil, or taroid, one–two inches of crushed stone chips, also drenched with taroid and topped with crushed stones.
The first motorsport event was a series of motorcycle races planned over two days, under the sanction of the Federation of American Motorcyclists (FAM), starting on August 14, 1909. Concerns about the track surface stopped the event part way through day one. Five days later 15 teams arrived for the first car event, held over three days. This was not without incident.
On day one Wilfred Bourque suffered a rear-axle failure, resulting in his car flipping end over end on the main straight, before crashing into a fence post, killing him and his mechanic Harry Halcomb. On day three the right front tire blew on Charlie Merz's car, knocking down five fence posts and dozens of spectators, killing two as well as his mechanic Claude Kellum. Ten laps later, after another accident, the race was cancelled.
The AAA, American Automobile Association, announced it would boycott further events unless the surface was changed. A concrete surface was considered but the track owners decided to pave the entire facility with bricks, after tests proved their durability. Five Indiana manufacturers supplied 3.2 million, 10-pound bricks.
Each was hand laid on a 2 inch bed of sand, then leveled and the gaps filled with mortar. A concrete wall 33 inches tall was also constructed in front of the main grandstand and around all four corners to protect spectators. The final brick was made of gold and laid in a special ceremony by Governor Thomas R. Marshall.
In December 1909, the track reopened for testing, with speeds of up to 112 mph being reported. Racing returned the next year, with a series of short races held over the three main holiday weekends: Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day.
The following year, 1911, racing was just confined to Memorial Day and the very first 500 mile race was held on May 30. It was won by a former racer and Marmon engineer Ray Harroun, who came out of retirement for just one race, driving the legendary Marmon-Wasp. Since then, the event has usually been held on the Sunday before Memorial Day, though there have been exceptions, due to World Wars I and II, the weather intervening and more recently the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Some 500 Trivia:
1911: Ray Harroun was the first winner of the 500, driving a Marmon-Wasp.
Race Time: 6:42:08.039. Average speed: 74.59 mph (120.04 km/h).
1913: Jules Goux of France was the first European and the first Rookie, excluding the inaugural race, to win,
1919: The 33 car field was established. The AAA mandated that each car on-track should have 400 feet all to itself. One lap of 2.5-miles divided by 400 feet is 33.
1920-21: Ralph DePalma was the first driver to take consecutive Poles.
1922: Jimmy Murphy was the first driver to win the race from pole position.
1936: Louis Meyer was the first driver to win three times, 1928, 1933, 1936. It was after his third win that the Lois Meyer asked for a glass of buttermilk, something his mother had encouraged him to drink on hot days, hence the tradition of the bottle of milk.
1940: Wilbur Shaw was the first driver to win back to back races, 1939-1940
1947: Mauri Rose and Bill Holland, scored the first team 1, 2 for entrant Lou Moore
1952: Art Cross won the first Rookie of the Year Award.
1961: Sir Jack Brabham was the first driver to race a rear engined car, a Cooper-Coventry Climax
1965: Jim Clark became the first Scotsman to win and first driver to win in a rear engined car, in the Lotus 38-Ford.
1966: Graham Hill won The 50th Indy 500, in a Lola T90-Ford and was the first Englishman as well as Rookie winner since 1927.
1967: Parnelli Jones raced the first gas turbine powered car, the Granatelli STP-Paxton Turbocar.
1977: Janet Guthrie became the first woman to qualify for the Indy 500.
A.J. Foyt was the first driver to win 4 times
1989: Emerson Fittipaldi became the first Brazilian driver to win.
1990: Arie Luyendyk became the first Dutch driver to win
1992: A.J. Foyt became the oldest driver to start the race at 57.
1992: Al Unser Jr. beat Scott Goodyear by 0.043 seconds in the 500's closest finish.
1992: Lyn St. James won the first Female Rookie of the Year Award.
1995: Jacques Villeneuve became first Canadian driver to win.
1996: Arie Luyendyk sets a new 1 lap track record of 37.895 seconds, 237.498 mph (382.216 km/h) and a new 4-lap average track record of 2:31.908, 236.986 mph (381.392 km/h).
He also recorded an unofficial 1 lap of 00:37.616 seconds, 239.260 mph (385.052 km/h). Will Arie Luyendyk's 24 year old lap records be finally broken this year? I doubt it.
1997: Arie Luyendyk became the first Dutch multiple winner, 1990 and 1997
1999: Kenny Bräck became first Swedish driver to win,
2005: Danica Patrick became the first female driver to lead the Indy 500.
2008: Scott Dixon became first New Zealand driver to win.
2009: Danica Patrick finished 3rd, the highest position for a female driver.
2016: Alexander Rossi won the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 and was the first Rookie since 2001.
2017: Takumo Sato became the first Japanese driver to win.
2018: Will Power became the first Australian driver to win.
2020: Takuma Sato became the first Japanese multiple winner, 2017 and 2020.
The was the first 500 to be held behind closed doors, as well as being held in August, due to the Covid-19 pandemic
2021: A record nine former 500 winners took part, three were multiple winners.
Helio Castroneves, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2021
Takuma Sato, 2017, 2020
Simon Pagenaud, 2019
Will Power, 2018
Alexander Rossi, 2016
Juan Pablo Montoya, 2000, 2015
Ryan Hunter-Reay, 2014
Tony Kanaan, 2013
Scott Dixon, 2008
2021: Helio Castroneves became the fourth driver to win 4 times, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2021
This was the fastest race, with a time of 2:37:19.3846 and an average speed of 190.690 mph (306.885 km/h)
2022: Scott Dixon sets the record fastest Pole, with a 4 lap average of 234.046 mph (376.660 km/h)
The starting field was the fastest in Indianapolis 500 history, with an average speed of 231.023 mph (371.795 km/h)
Scott Dixon takes the record for most laps led, 95.
There have been 10 Rookie winners:
Ray Harroun, 1911 (inaugural race)
Jules Goux, 1913
Rene Thomas, 1914
Frank Lockhart, 1926
George Souders, 1927
Louis Meyer, 1928
Graham Hill, 1966
Juan Pablo Montoya, 2000
Helio Castroneves, 2001
Alexander Rossi, 2016
There have been 9 women drivers:
Janet Guthrie, 1977-79
Lyn St. James, 1992-97, 2000
Sarah Fisher, 2000-04, 2007-10
Danica Patrick, 2005-11, 2018
Milka Duno, 2007-09
Ana Beatriz, 2010-12, 2021
Simona de Silvestro, 2010-12, 2021.
Katherine Legge, 2012, 2013
Pippa Mann 2011, 2013-2017, 2019
The driver with the most wins is 4.
Hélio Castroneves: 2001, 2002, 2009, 2021
Rick Mears: 1979, 1984, 1988, 1991.
Al Unser Sr.: 1970, 1971, 1978, 1987.
A.J. Foyt: 1961, 1964, 1967, 1977.
The team with the most wins:
Team Penske, 18.
1972, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1994, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2015, 2018, 2019.
The driver/team owner with the most wins:
A.J. Foyt. 1964, 1967, 1977.
Current driver with the most wins:
Hélio Castroneves. 2001, 2002, 2009, 2021.
Only five drivers have won the Indianapolis 500 two years in a row
Wilbur Shaw 1939-'40
Mauri Rose 1947-'48
Bill Vukovich 1953-'54
Al Unser 1970-'71
Helio Castroneves 2001-'02
The car number with the most wins is #3 with 11.
The team with the most Poles:
Tram Penske, 18.
1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2019
The driver with the most Poles
Rick Mears, 6
1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991
The starting grid position with the most wins is Pole, with 21.
The car number with the most Poles is #1, with 13.
Chassis manufacturer with most wins, Dallara 21.
Engine manufacturer with most wins, Offenhauser 27.
Tyre manufacturer with most wins, Firestone 70.
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Track layout:
Length: 2.5 Miles (4.02 Km)
Straightaways: 5/8 of a mile (1000 m)
Short chutes: 1/8 of a mile (200 m)
Turns: 4, with 9.2º banking. 1/4 of mile (400 m)
1 lap record:
Arie Luyendyk, May 10, 1996. 00:37.895 seconds, 237.498 mph (382.216 km/h).
Reynard 94i-Ford Cosworth XB,
Indy Racing League.
4 lap average record:
Arie Luyendyk, May 12, 1996. 2:31.908, 236.986 mph (381.392 km/h),
Reynard 94i-Ford Cosworth XB,
Indy Racing League.
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Last year's race:
https://www.indycar.com/news/2022/05...-500-race-lead
Pole:
Scott Dixon,
Chip Ganassi Racing
Dallara IR18-Honda HI22TT Indy-V-6
Combined four lap average 2:35.3837 minutes. 231.685 mph (372.861 km/h)
Winner:
Marcus Ericsson,
Chip Ganassi Racing,
Dallara IR18-Honda HI22TT Indy V6.
Laps: 200
Distance: 500 Miles (805 km)
Race Time: 2:51:00.6432
Average Speed: 175.428 mph (282.324 km/h).
Fastest lap: Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing,
Lap 179 . 40.0263 sec, 224.852 mph, (361.864 km/h)
Caution periods: 6
Laps: 39 - 45, 69 - 76, 106 - 111, 152 - 157, 195 - 197, 200 - 200
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Race broadcast:
NBC May 28th, 11:00am ET. 3:00pm UTC, 4:00pm BST
Sky Sports F1, 4:00 pm BST