(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)
By Aaron Bearden
The NTT IndyCar Series’ biggest race day has come around again.
For the 106th time, a full field of competitors will take to Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s 2.5-mile oval for 200 laps in an effort to claim the Indianapolis 500. The winner will get a drink of cold milk and their face etched on the Borg-Warner Trophy, American motorsport’s ultimate prize.
Here’s your primer on the Field of 33 racing for their chance at IndyCar history.
Row 1
1) Scott Dixon
(Photo: Chris Owens / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 9
Hometown: Auckland, New Zealand
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing
Previous Starts: 19
Best Finish: 2008 Indy 500 Champion
Last Year: Dixon qualified on pole and showed promise, but wound up 17th after suffering early issues on pit road.
2) Alex Palou
(Photo: Chris Owens / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 10
Hometown: Barcelona, Spain
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing
Previous Starts: Two
Best Finish: Second (2021)
Last Year: Palou lost out in a late battle for the win with Helio Castroneves. He later parlayed the run into his first IndyCar title.
3) Rinus Veekay
(Photo: Chris Owens / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 21
Hometown: Hoofddorp, Netherlands
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Ed Carpenter Racing
Previous Starts: Two
Best Finish: Eighth (2021)
Last Year: A strong third-place qualifying effort laid the groundwork for a consistent top-10 performance from Palou and Ed Carpenter Racing. He’ll hope to build on that run this season.
Row 2
4) Ed Carpenter
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 33
Hometown: Indianapolis, Indiana
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Ed Carpenter Racing
Previous Starts: 18
Best Finish: Second (2018)
Last Year: Another strong qualifying performance (fourth) yielded Carpenter’s third top-five finish in fifth. The veteran remains an annual contender when the Month of May rolls around.
5) Marcus Ericsson
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 8
Hometown: Kumla, Sweden
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing
Previous Starts: Three
Best Finish: 11th (2021)
Last Year: A quiet run saw Ericsson start ninth and finish 11th.
6) Tony Kanaan
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 1
Hometown: Salvador, Brazil
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing
Previous Starts: 20
Best Finish: 2013 Indy 500 Champion
Last Year: Kanaan proved that he still had pace in his return to Chip Ganassi Racing, qualifying fifth and finishing 10th.
Row 3
7) Pato O’Ward
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 5
Hometown: Monterrey, Mexico
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Arrow McLaren SP
Previous Starts: Two
Best Finish: Fourth (2021)
Last Year: O’Ward was in the running for the win into the closing stages, sitting third before fading one spot to a late overtake from Simon Pagenaud.
8) Felix Rosenqvist
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 7
Hometown: Varnamo, Sweden
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Arrow McLaren SP
Previous Starts: Three
Best Finish: 12th (2020)
Last Year: Rosenqvist came home 27th as part of a rough overall 2021 campaign.
9) Romain Grosjean
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 28
Hometown: Geneva, Switzerland
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Andretti Autosport
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Grosjean watched on as his colleagues battled, having elected to sit out the ovals to that point. He later ran at World Wide Technology Raceway before agreeing to run oval races in 2022.
Row 4
10) Takuma Sato
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 51
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Dale Coyne Racing with RWR
Previous Starts: 12
Best Finish: Two-time Indy 500 Champion (2017, 2020)
Last Year: A challenging fuel strategy play didn’t work out for Sato, leaving the Japanese star 14th at race’s end after a late stop for fuel.
11) Will Power
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 12
Hometown: Toowoomba, Australia
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Team Penske
Previous Starts: 14
Best Finish: 2018 Indy 500 Champion
Last Year: Power’s only memorable moment was when he called Castroneves a “legend of the sport” and admitted to being unsure of who the No. 06 was after his own 30th-place finish. He had issues on the parade laps and spun on pit road late in the race.
12) Jimmie Johnson
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 48
Hometown: El Cajon, California
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Chip Ganassi Racing
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Johnson watched on as part of the broadcast team for the day, which helped set the stage for his eventual decision to give the race a go this year.
Row 5
13) David Malukas
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 18
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Dale Coyne Racing with HMD
Previous Starts: Nona
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Malukas raced in Indy Lights with dreams of rising to the IndyCar level, finishing second in that tour’s championship before rising up with Dale Coyne Racing and HMD Motorsports.
14) Josef Newgarden
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 2
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Team Penske
Previous Starts: 10
Best Finish: Fourth (2019)
Last Year: Newgarden struggled for pace, as did the rest of Team Penske. He never factored into the battle for the win and finished 12th.
15) Santino Ferrucci
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 23
Hometown: Woodbury, Connecticut
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
Previous Starts: Three
Best Finish: Fourth (2020)
Last Year: Ferrucci was one of the starts of the day, rising from 23rd to sixth in an impressive 500 outing for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Row 6
16) Simon Pagenaud
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 60
Hometown: Montmorillon, France
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Meyer Shank Racing
Previous Starts: 10
Best Finish: 2019 Indy 500 Champion
Last Year: Pagenaud was Team Penske’s best hope. He steadily marched forward from 26th and got up to third in the final laps. Pagenaud just ran out of time to challenge the top two.
17) JR Hildebrand
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 11
Hometown: Sausalito, California
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: A.J. Foyt Enterprises
Previous Starts: 11
Best Finish: Second (2011)
Last Year: Hildebrand was quiet and consistent for A.J. Foyt Enterprises, bringing home a 15th-place result at race’s end.
18) Conor Daly
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 20
Hometown: Noblesville, Indiana
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Ed Carpenter Racing
Previous Starts: Eight
Best Finish: 10th (2019)
Last Year: Daly led 40 laps in the most notable Indy 500 performance of his career. He wound up 13th at race’s end, but created memories after leading for the first time.
Row 7
19) Callum Ilott
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 77
Hometown: Cambridge, United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Juncos Hollinger Racing
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Ilott wasn’t around come Indy 500 time. His arrival at Juncos Hollinger Racing came later in the year at Portland. Ilott instead served as Alfa Romeo’s second reserve driver, making an FP1 appearance in Austria.
20) Alexander Rossi
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 27
Hometown: Nevada City, California
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Andretti Autosport
Previous Starts: Six
Best Finish: 2016 Indy 500 Champion
Last Year: An issue on pit road in the opening 40 laps relegated Rossi to a disappointing 29th-place result.
21) Graham Rahal
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 15
Hometown: New Albany, Ohio
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Previous Starts: 14
Best Finish: Third (2011, 2020)
Last Year: A loose wheel ended what seemed poised to be a strong run for Rahal, resulting in a hard crash after a Lap 119 pit stop the dropped him to 32nd.
Row 8
22) Sage Karam
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 24
Hometown: Nazareth, Pennsylvania
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
Previous Starts: Eight
Best Finish: Seventh (2021)
Last Year: Karam excelled, coming from the back row to seventh in one of the most impressive drives of the day.
23) Marco Andretti
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 98
Hometown: Nazareth, Pennsylvania
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Andretti Herta Autosport w/ Marco & Curb
Previous Starts: 16
Best Finish: Second (2006)
Last Year: Andretti just didn’t have the pace. He wound up 19th with little buzz or fanfare.
24) Devlin DeFrancesco
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 29
Hometown: Toronto, Canada
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Indy Lights played home to DeFrancesco, who made the step up after running Indy Pro 2000 in 2020. He landed a pair of podiums early on and finished sixth in the standings before moving up to Andretti Autosport’s IndyCar program for 2022.
Row 9
25) Colton Herta
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 26
Hometown: Valencia, California
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Andretti Autosport w/ Curb-Agajanian
Previous Starts: Three
Best Finish: Eighth (2020)
Last Year: Brief stretches of strong pace showed promise for Herta, but he faded when it counted and finished 16th.
26) Scott McLaughlin
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 3
Hometown: Christchurch, New Zealand
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Tean Penske
Previous Starts: One
Best Finish: 20th (2021)
Last Year: McLaughlin encountered the usual rookie struggles, ending the day 20th despite a strong showing overall in the Month of May.
27) Helio Castroneves
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 06
Hometown: Sao Paolo, Brazl
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Meyer Shank Racing
Previous Starts: 21
Best Finish: Four-Time Indy 500 Champion (2001, 2002, 2009, 2021)
Last Year: Castroneves used his veteran wit to school Alex Palou and score a historic fourth Indy 500 win, placing him among the greatest names in the race’s history. He rang it in with one of the longest victory celebrations you’ll ever see.
Row 10
28) Kyle Kirkwood
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 14
Hometown: Jupiter, Florida
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: A.J. Foyt Enterprises
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Kirkwood continued his unprecedented sweep through the Road to Indy, winning the Indy Lights championship at the first time of asking. That landed him a scholarship that took him to IndyCar for this year’s race.
29) Dalton Kellett
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 4
Hometown: Stouffville, Canada
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: A.J. Foyt Enterprises
Previous Starts: Two
Best Finish: 23rd (2021)
Last Year: A slow outing for Foyt teams saw Kellett sneak home with a clean car in 23rd.
30) Juan Pablo Montoya
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 6
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: Arrow McLaren SP
Previous Starts: Six
Best Finish: Two-Time Indy 500 Champion (2000, 2015)
Last Year: Montoya showed that he can still deliver at the Brickyard, tallying a solid ninth-place result that helped his case for a 2022 return.
Row 11
31) Christian Lundgaard
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 30
Hometown: Hedensted, Denmark
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Previous Starts: None
Best Finish: N/A
Last Year: Lundgaard raced across the pond in Monaco with Formula 2. The Alpine Academy member didn’t come to IndyCar until the August race on the Indy road course, where he surprised with a fourth-place qualifying effort before finishing 12th.
32) Jack Harvey
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 45
Hometown: Bassingham, United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Honda
Team: Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Previous Starts: Five
Best Finish: Ninth (2020)
Last Year: It was a bittersweet day for Harvey, who saw his Meyer Shank Racing team win – with the other driver. Harvey came home 18th and was out in favor of 2019 Indy winner Simon Pagenaud at year’s end.
33) Stefan Wilson
(Photo: John Cote / Penske Entertainment)
Car No.: 25
Hometown: Sheffield, United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Team: DragonSpeed / Cusick Motorsports
Previous Starts: Three
Best Finish: 15th (2018)
Last Year: Wilson suffered a short return to the Brickyard, crashing on pit road on Lap 34 and finishing 33rd.
