Indy 500 Race Preview: Start Time, How To Watch, Pole, Lineup

INDIANAPOLIS — Much like the Super Bowl does for football and March Madness does for college basketball, the Indianapolis 500 brings casual sports fans to IndyCar racing one day a year.

The Sunday before Memorial Day has been highlighted by the famous race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for several decades. In 2021, the race returns to its traditional day, scheduled for May 30 this year, after it was postponed to August in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Often referred to as "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing," the Indy 500 is the first event of the IndyCar Series, 10 scheduled races among the top open-wheel racecar drivers in the world. It’s similar to the Daytona 500 in NASCAR in being the first and premier event of a race car season.

Here’s what to know about the 2021 Indy 500:

Start Time

The 105th running of the Indianapolis 500 will begin at 12:45 p.m. Eastern time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana.

Pole Driver

Veteran IndyCar driver Scott Dixon earned the inside pole position by narrowly besting two of his younger rivals, Colton Herta and Rinus VeeKay, in last weekend’s qualifying race. This is Dixon’s fourth time in the Indy 500 pole position.

Front Row

Herta and VeeKay will join Dixon in the front row to start the Indy 500 on Sunday.

Lineup

Thirty-three drivers will make up the Indy 500 lineup.

• Row 1: Scott Dixon, Colton Herta, Rinus VeeKay
• Row 2: Ed Carpenter, Tony Kanaan, Alex Palou
• Row 3: Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, Marcus Ericsson
• Row 4: Alexander Rossi, Ed Jones, Pato O’Ward
• Row 5: Pietro Fittipaldi, Felix Rosenqvist, Takuma Sato
• Row 6: James Hinchcliffe, Scott McLaughlin, Graham Rahal
• Row 7: Conor Daly, Jack Harvey, Josef Newgarden
• Row 8: J.R. Hildebrand, Santino Ferucci, Juan Pablo Montoya
• Row 9: Marco Andretti, Simon Pagenaud, Sebastien Bourdais
• Row 10: Stefan Wilson, Max Chilton, Dalton Kellett
• Row 11: Sage Karam, Will Power, Simona de Silvestro

Favorites

Dixon is a +350 favorite to win the 2021 Indy 500, according to DraftKings Nation. Herta is second in the odds list at +700, with O’Ward third at +1000.

Defending Champion

Takuma Sato is the defending champion after his 2020 Indy 500 win. Simon Pagenaud won the Indy 500 in 2019.

Past Winners

Dixon, Kanaan, Hunter-Reay, Castroneves, Rossi, Montoya and Power are other drivers in this year’s field who have previously won the race.

How To Watch

The race will air on national television on NBC, with a livestream on Peacock also available.

Fans Allowed

Fans are allowed at the Indy 500 again in 2021 after the 2020 race was held without spectators. A crowd of up to 135,000 is expected at Sunday’s race, which would make the event the largest in the United States since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Sporting News.
Still, the 135,000 total only accounts for 40 percent of the speedway’s capacity.