One of the World's Big Three's

By Paul MarinelliONE OF THE WORLD'S BIG THREE RETURNS IN 2021

The 105th running of one of the world’s greatest motor races, the Indy 500, made it back onto the track during America’s Memorial Day weekend in May 2021.

This is one of the triumvirate of motor racing events that every racing driver dreams of winning, joined by the majestic Monaco Formula One Grand Prix and the epic Le Mans 24 Hour race.

Only one driver, Briton Graham Hill (father of 1996 Formula One World Champion Damon Hill) managed to win all three during his outstanding career. He won the Indy 500 in 1966, the Le Mans 24 Hour in 1972 and the Monaco Grand Prix five times — in 1963, 1964, 1965, 1968 and 1969. In addition to this, Graham Hill also became a double Formula One World Champion, taking the top honours in both 1962 and 1968.

Spaniard Fernando Alonso, with two Monaco GP victories and two Le Mans 24 Hour wins. They are joined by Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya and New Zealand ace Bruce McLaren, who each have also won two of world motor racing’s big three.

The Indy 500 attracts close to 300,000 spectators to the incredibly fast 2.5 mile (4 km) oval superspeedway affectionately known to motorsport fans as The Brickyard. This nickname is derived from the original surface construction of crushed stone and tar that dates all the way back to 1909. A small portion of the old brickwork remains intact across the legendary circuit’s startfinish line as a memento of this epic event’s long history.

In its earlier years the Indy 500 awarded huge prize money to the top 12 finishing drivers. These days every driver who competes is awarded prize money, attracting an oversubscribed field that forces everyone to qualify during the month before the race in order to make it to the starting grid. This year’s popular four-time winner, Brazilian Helio Castroneves, earned $1,828,305 for his 2021 Indy 500 victory, an outstanding achievement as a wildcard entrant with a part-time IndyCar team.

The extremely talented 2021 Indy 500 runner-up, Alex Palou from Barcelona, Spain, walked away with $649,305 for his effort, which took the battle for the win all the way to the final laps of the race.

One of our Trans-Tasman representatives in the big race, triple Supercars Champion Scott McLaughlin was running within the top ten for most of his debut Indy 500. A drive-through penalty for speeding in the pit lane saw him relegated to 20th by the chequered flag, which still earned him the top rookie (first Indy 500) honours. Don’t feel too sorry for him though; he took home $151,305 for his efforts.

Six-time IndyCar Champion and 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon (NZ) finished in 17th place after a badly timed Safety Car period relegated him to the rear of the field. Dixon still took home a cool $316,305 .

2010 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year and Former Nissan Supercars driver Simona De Silvestro returned to the Indy 500 this year, her race coming to an abrupt end in the pits after making it to the top 20. She earned $100,305 for her effort.

De Silvestro is one of nine females to have competed in this world famous motor race. Janet Guthrie was the first in 1977; she was followed by Lyn St. James, Sarah Fisher, Danica Patrick, Milka Duno, Ana Beatriz, Katherine Legge and Pippa Mann.

The Indy 500 is not for the faint-hearted, with this year’s race being the fastest ever, reaching average lap speeds of 306.8 kph (190.6 mph). Scott Dixon was the top qualifier, reaching a top speed of 372.8 kph (231.6 mph) during his pole position setting lap. A total of 30 cars finished the gruelling 200 lap race, establishing another new record.