At the end of May, the 106th edition of America’s favorite Indy Car race, the Indy 500, will take place. As always, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will play host to the legendary event that first started in 1911.
It is the fastest car race on the planet and will feature some of the very best drivers from around the world. With the hugely popular event close at hand, here is everything you need to know about the race before tuning into the 2022 Indy 500.
When is the Indy 500?
This year’s 500 race takes place on May 29, from inside the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana. The track was originally built in 1909 and has been home to the iconic race ever since. The venue has 250,000 seats, however, when general admission tickets are added to that total, nearly 350,000 can pack into the speedway to watch one of the biggest events on the Indy Car schedule.
Related: Indy qualifying, lineups, results, and all-time winners
What’s the Indy 500 start time?
Unlike many other major American events, the Indy 500 doesn’t start in prime time. It is an event that is built around daylight and a pretty sizeable international audience. The Indy 500 time for the 2022 edition of the race is expected to see the green flag drop at 12:45 PM ET.
How can I watch the race?
The 106th edition of the Indianapolis 500 will be aired in the United States on NBC Network. Coverage for the event will begin with a pre-race show starting at 11 AM ET. The broadcast is expected to last until 4 PM ET and includes the winner being awarded the Born-Warner Trophy and downing a cold bottle of the finest milk.
How many laps is the Indy 500?
The 500 in the race’s name stands for the number of miles the drivers will travel by the end of the day, not the laps like many people sometimes assume. During the three to four hours long events the 33 Indy 500 cars will circle the 2.5 miles long Indianapolis Motor Speedway 200 times, at speeds at and over 200 mile-per-hour.
Indy 500 pole results 2022
The legendary Scott Dixon posted the fastest Indy 500 pole run in history on Sunday with an average of 234.046 miles per hour. His average broke Scott Brayton’s pole-winning record of 233.718 miles-per-hour, set back in 1996. For the fifth time in his career, Dixon will lead the green come May 28.
2022 Indy 500 lineup
The lineup for the majority of the 35 drivers in this year’s 500 race is set after qualifying runs on May 21. However, the grid layouts for the participants in the race will be determined the day before the contest that goes down on Sunday, May 29.
| Position | Car Number | Driver |
| 1 | 9 | Scott Dixon |
| 2 | 10 | Alex Palou |
| 3 | 21 | Rinus VeeKay |
| 4 | 33 | Ed Carpenter |
| 5 | 8 | Marcus Ericcson |
| 6 | 1 | Tony Kanaan |
| 7 | 5 | Pato O’Ward |
| 8 | 7 | Felix Roseqvist |
| 9 | 28 | Romain Grosjean |
| 10 | 51 | Takuma Sato |
| 11 | 12 | Will Power |
| 12 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson |
| 13 | 18 | David Malukas |
| 14 | 2 | Josef Newgarden |
| 15 | 23 | Santino Ferrucci |
| 16 | 60 | Simon Pagenaud |
| 17 | 11 | JR Hildebrand |
| 18 | 20 | Conor Daly |
| 19 | 77 | Callum Ilott |
| 20 | 27 | Alexander Rossi |
| 21 | 15 | Graham Rahal |
| 22 | 24 | Sage Karam |
| 23 | 98 | Marco Andretti |
| 24 | 29 | Devlin DeFrancesco |
| 25 | 26 | Colton Herta |
| 26 | 3 | Scott McLaughlin |
| 27 | 27 | Helio Castroneves |
| 28 | 14 | Kyle Kirkwood |
| 29 | 4 | Dalton Kellett |
| 30 | 6 | Juan Pablo Montoya |
| 31 | 30 | Christian Lundgaard |
| 32 | 45 | Jack Harvey |
| 33 | 25 | Stefan Wilson |
Buying tickets for the 2022 Indy 500
While many premier seats to the race are sold out, you can still purchase tickets to this year’s Indy 500 directly from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway here. Currently, general admission tickets are as low as $45, while the highest go for $135.
The Indy 500 is a week-long event in Indianapolis. Along with purchasing tickets for the event, racing fans can also buy tickets to the practice days (which take place from May 17 to 20) for only $15, and the Firestone Legends Day concert the day before the event on May 28.
Indy 500 part of ‘greatest day in motorsports’ trio of races
On the same day as this year’s 500, there will also be major races from the other two motorsport circuits in the world. At the Charlotte Motor Speedway, Nascar will be running their annual Coca Cola 600 race, while in the beautiful city of Monte Carlo, Formula One presents the Monaco Grand Prix. It is a rarity to have three major racing events in one day, and it is why it’s such a special occasion for auto racing enthusiasts.
Who won Indy 500 2021?
In 2021, racing legend Hélio Castroneves made history. Twenty years after winning his first Indy 500, the Brazilian won the May classic for the fourth time. He finished the race in just over two hours and 37 minutes. Castroneves tied Rick Mears, Al Unser, and AJ Foyt as the only men to win the race on four occasions. He was also the fourth driver ever to win the race at 46-years-old.
The historic 2021 edition of the race will also go down as the fastest. There were only two cautions throughout the event that saw Indy Car fender benders on pit road instead of on the race track.
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