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Castroneves is going for his fifth Indy 500 win – something no-one has achieved before
THECONTENDERS
ON THE GRID
Power (third from left) leads points, Newgarden (second from left) has won twice so far in ‘22, McLaughlin (left) and Grosjean (right) have flourished in IndyCar; Ilott (far right) leads Brits
Young guns and veterans
● Castroneves going for five ● Three Brits on 33-car grid
Stephen Errity
Stephen _ Errity@autovia.co.uk
SUNDAY 29 May is the date for the 106th running of the Indianapolis 500 – the centrepiece event of the US IndyCar series and the biggest single-day sporting event by attendance numbers in the world.
A grid of 33 drivers will take to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the race, with seven former winners among them. A total of 33 is the traditional maximum for the event, meaning this year will have no ‘Bump Day’ qualifying that sees potential starters eliminated before the lights go out.
The grid order is set across two days of qualifying on Saturday and Sunday before the race, with the final pre-race practice session, also known as ‘Carb Day’ , taking place on Friday 27 May.
Veteran Helio Castroneves is the defending champion, and looking to score a record-breaking fifth Indy 500 win. The Brazilian ace hasn’t contested a full IndyCar season since 2017, but 2022. Another recent F1 convert is Swede Marcus Ericsson; his countryman Felix Rosenqvist and Dane Christian Lundgaard complete the Scandinavian contingent.
British representation at Indy is less than in some previous years, but the flag will be flown by Rahal-Letterman’s Jack Harvey (making his fifth 500 start), DragonSpeed’s Stefan Wilson (younger brother of the late Justin) and Juncos-Hollinger’s Callum Ilott.
The latter is dovetailing his IndyCar effort with a test and reserve position for the Alfa Romeo F1 team and continued membership of the Ferrari young driver academy scheme. He recorded a best IndyCar finish to date of eighth on the Indianapolis road course.
The final major story of the 2022 Indy 500 is the first appearance at the race of seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson. The 46-year-old joined the IndyCar grid with Chip Ganassi Racing at the start of the 2021 season and initially avoided races on ovals, but has changed tack for 2022.
Viewers in the UK can watch the Indy 500 live on Sunday 29 May on the Sky Sports F1 channel, with coverage of the extensive build-up likely to begin as soon as the Monaco Grand Prix coverage concludes.
has continued to appear at the 500 every year, and is once again driving for Meyer Shank Racing, with whom he took victory in 2021. He’s joined there by Frenchman Simon Pagenaud, the winner in 2019.
Castroneves’ fellow semi-retired Brazilian Tony Kanaan is also on the grid, looking to add to his sole triumph to date in 2013, as is F1 race winner Juan Pablo Montoya, who won Indy on his debut in 2000. Japan’s Takuma Sato is also back for more, having won in 2017 and 2020 with the Andretti and Rahal-Letterman teams respectively.
Current championship leader Will Power (Team Penske) and six-time championship winner Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing), along with Power’s Penske team-mate Josef Newgarden, are also big threats for victory. American Newgarden has won twice already this season, topping the podium at Texas’ oval and Long Beach’s street course.
However, many observers will be looking to one of IndyCar’s crop of rising young guns to score a breakthrough win at the ‘Brickyard’ in 2022. They include New Zealander Scott McLaughlin, who moved to IndyCar in 2021 having dominated the Australian Supercars series for many years, and Mexican Pato O’Ward, who finished the 2021 season in third, behind Newgarden and the champion, Spain’s Alex Palou.
Dutchman Rinus VeeKay and American Colton Herta, who won the Indianapolis road-course race that kicks off preparations for the 500, are also looking to make a name for themselves this time around.
Elsewhere, Romain Grosjean will take on his first Indy 500 since switching to US racing in the aftermath of his fiery Bahrain Grand Prix crash at the end of the 2020 Formula 1 season.
The former Lotus and Haas driver reached the podium three times in his debut year, when he skipped the 500, and finished second at Long Beach in
