Indy 500 field is wide open

SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Thirty-three drivers are set to take the grid at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with one goal in mind — etching their likeness in the Borg-Warner Trophy as the winner of the 98th Indianapolis 500.

This year’s field of drivers is one of the most diverse to date. Six former winners take the grid, including Juan Pablo Montoya and Jacques Villeneuve, who return to the track as defending winners after years away in other forms of motorsport.

Of the seven rookies taking the field, NASCAR regular Kurt Busch will look to complete his first Indy 500.

The diversity of the field and the unpredictability of the Verizon IndyCar Series this season, combined with the current aerodynamics packages of the cars, has made determining a race favorite difficult, various drivers have said.

Five different teams are represented in the top nine after qualifying, and after a record 68 lead changes this past season, Team Penske driver Will Power said he believes the race is anyone’s for the taking.

“There isn’t a car out there that can’t win it,” Power said. “The whole field is going to start on the front stretch, and the whole field is going to finish on the front stretch on the last lap. They’re all going to be there because with the draft it doesn’t matter. No one can get away.”

Power’s reference to the draft is a direct result of the new style of racing at Indianapolis that has since occurred with the introduction of the new chassis implemented two seasons ago.

Unlike years past, when a lead driver could run away from the field, the current rules package limits teams’ abilities to develop dominating cars. Instead, the field is tighter than ever, with few teams having a distinct speed advantage.

The result of the change is added emphasis on being able to navigate through traffic.
Sunday’s race — which will start at 12:12 p.m. — will likely be determined by which drivers can navigate through traffic the best and navigate through the dirty air created by competitors’ cars.

Sunday will be the first time all 33 cars will be out on the track in race conditions, which adds to the difficulty of keeping up with the track conditions.

“There’s quite a lot of turbulence in these cars,” Josef Newgarden said. “When you run the actual race on Sunday, it can be different sometimes than just practicing on a race day, when you’re in a train of four cars, because in the race if you get in a pack of 10 cars, it’s even more turbulent.”

Teams will vary how much downforce they put into the car.

Teams in the back of the field will use more wing to better take advantage of the draft, while the front of the field will trim more to try to fend off the tow.

Since the implementation of the new chassis, the Indy 500 has come down to late passes in the closing laps.

The first four races of the IndyCar season have been won by four different drivers.

A different face has been etched into the Borg-Warner Trophy in five of the past six years at Indianapolis.

With the parity in the series, combined with the unpredictability of Indianapolis, Power said he hopes everything falls into place.

“It’s funny, racing,” Power said. “It’s all just got to fall your way on your day.”