IndyCar logo courtesy of IndyCar.
In a statement released by IndyCar on Monday 11th August, a 33-car field will enter the Indianapolis 500. Among those include eight past winners: Helio Castroneves (2001, 2002, 2009), Scott Dixon (2008), Tony Kanaan (2013), Ryan Hunter-Reay (2014), Alexander Rossi (2016), Takuma Sato (2017), Will Power (2018) and Simon Pagenaud (2019).
Castroneves, who retired from a full time IndyCar seat in 2017 will be aiming for his fourth win in an attempt to join an elite list of drivers with the same accolades including: A.J Foyt, Al Unser, and Rick Mears.
The field will include six IndyCar champions including: Scott Dixon, Will Power, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Tony Kanaan, Simon Pagenaud, and reigning champion Josef Newgarden.
Also joining them will be two-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso, who returns to the ‘500’ with the Arrow McLaren SP team. Alonso will be competing to become only the second driver in history, alongside Graham Hill, to achieve the ‘triple crown’.
Alonso had two previous outings at the ‘500’, which both saw him retire with an engine related issue and fail to qualify for the starting grid. Alonso will be hoping ‘three times the charm’, as Arrow McLaren SP have seemingly been on the rise with recent performances from Patricio O’Ward and Oliver Askew. Thus, the Spaniard may be in a good position to challenge for a win this time around.
There were initial worries that IndyCar may not have been able to stage a full field due to the current coronavirus pandemic. However, late entries from Ben Hanley (DragonSpeed Racing) and James Davison (Dale Coyne, Byrd Racing, Belardi Autosport and Rick Ware Racing) have ensured this will not be the case.
However, the purse for the event has been nearly slashed in half, following the news that the race will be held with no spectators for the first time in its history.
Five drivers will be competing for the rookie of the year title: Alex Palou, Oliver Askew, Pato O’Ward, Rinus Veekay and Dalton Kellet. O’Ward, will be aiming for redemption after failing to qualify in last year’s qualifying shootout.
Andretti Autosport has entered six cars, the most of any team.
Practice runs between Wednesday 12th and Friday 14th August. Qualifying is scheduled between Saturday 15th and 16th August. The final practice session, which has been extended to two hours will be held on Friday 21st August.
The Indianapolis 500 will be set to race at 2:30pm on Sunday 23rd August, with live coverage on Sky Sports F1 in the UK and NBC in the US.
Complete Entry List
1 Josef Newgarden Team Penske Chevrolet
3 Helio Castroneves Team Penske Chevrolet
4 Charlie Kimball AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet
5 Pato O’Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet
7 Oliver Askew Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet
8 Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
10 Felix Rosenqvist Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
12 Will Power Team Penske Chevrolet
14 Tony Kanaan AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet
15 Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
18 Santino Ferucci Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan
20 Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
21 Rinus Veekay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
22 Simon Pagenaud Team Penske Chevrolet
24 Sage Karam Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet
26 Zach Veach Andretti Autosport Honda
27 Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
28 Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda
29 James Hinchcliffe Andretti Autosport Honda
30 Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
41 Dalton Kellett AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet
45 Spencer Pigot Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
47 Conor Daly Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
51 James Davison Dale Coyne Racing Honda
55 Alex Palou Dale Coyne Racing Honda
59 Max Chilton Carlin Chevrolet
60 Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing Honda
66 Fernando Alonso Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet
67 JR Hilderbrand Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet
81 Ben Hanley DragonSpeed Chevrolet
88 Colton Herta Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport Honda
98 Marco Andretti Andretti Herta Autosport with Marco Curb-Agajanian