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    Scott Dixon wins Indy 500 pole position with record 234 mph run

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    Scott Dixon is on it this year.

    The six-time IndyCar series champion grabbed pole position on Sunday with a record-fast 234.046 mph four-lap run.

    It marks the fifth time Dixon will start the race from pole, including 2021 and 2008 when he won his only Indy 500.

    The New Zealander’s time in his Chip Ganassi Racing Honda was the fastest pole run since 1996 when Scott Brayton set a four lap average qualifying time of 233.718 mph.

    Scott Dixon’s pole qualifying run of 234.046 mph is an all-time record. (Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    The all-time four lap qualifying record still belongs to Arie Luyendyk, who clocked 236.986 mph in1996, but not on pole day.

    Dixon won the 2008 Indy 500 from pole position. (Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    Dixon will start on the front row alongside 2021 IndyCar champion Alex Palou and Rinus VeeKay.

    Indy specialist Ed Carpenter, Marcus Ericsson and Tony Kanan round out the Fast Six.

    Indy 500 rookie Jimmie Johnson will start twelfth after running wide and having to make a quick save to avoid wrecking into the wall on his final run.

    “Just committed to run one flat, and it just was so light on top of the track,” Johnson said. “I was wide and trying to keep it off the fence at that point.”

    Jimmie Johnson will start the Indy 500 in twelfth position.  (Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    “Inexperience, ultimately.”

    The 106th running of the Indy 500 is scheduled for Sunday, May 29.

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    The Associated Press contributed to this report

    Fox runs on track during Indy 500 practice and narrowly misses 225 mph cars

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    We’d love to know what this fox had to say.

    The first 2022 Indy 500 practice session was yellow-flagged for a fox on the track. (Jamie_Hall (iStock)//Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    The first yellow flag was thrown during the opening day of practice for the 2022 Indy 500 on Tuesday when a fox was seen running the wrong way down the track.

    Qualifying for the Indy 500 starts this weekend. (Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Image)

    Video captured the moment the critter exited the infield and crossed the racing surface between turns three and four as cars were turning 225 mph laps.

    Fortunately, the fox was able to jump the outside wall and squeeze through the catch fencing just seconds before several cars sped by.

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    Two-time Indy 500 champion Takuma Sato set the fastest lap on Tuesday at an average speed of 228.939 mph, followed by 2008 winner Scott Dixon at 227.768 mph and Jimmie Johnson at 227.722 mph.

    Takuma Sato set the fastest lap on the first day of practice at an average speed of 228.939 mph (Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    Johnson is in his second season as an IndyCar driver, but this will be his first Indy 500 after he skipped the oval races last season.

    IndyCar driver takes Ashton Kutcher for a 140 mph thrill ride and doesn’t know who he is

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    Ride-hail services usually introduce the driver and passenger, but things are apparently different on a racetrack.

    Ashton Kutcher attended the first F1 Miami Grand Prix. (Doug Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    During the recent Formula One Miami Grand Prix weekend, Ashton Kutcher was one of the VIPs who got to go for a hot lap of the track during an event held by Pirelli.

    The Pirelli hot lap program lets guests go for a ride with a professional racing driver behind the wheel. (Pirelli)

    The actor-entrepreneur rode shotgun in a sports car with IndyCar racer Callum Ilott, who is also a reserve driver for the Alfa Romeo F1 team.

    SEE IT: INDYCAR WINDSHIELD SAVES CALUM ILOTT’S LIFE AS IT’S STRUCK BY DEBRIS

    In-car video from the ride shows Kutcher asking, “We can take that faster than that, can’t we?” before Ilott gets the car up to 140 mph on the Miami Autodrome circuit.

    Kutcher doesn’t look worried, even though it turns out he doesn’t have any idea who’s behind the wheel. 

    “I race with him in IndyCar,” Ilott says as he approaches another car in front of them.

    “You race IndyCar?” Kutcher responds.

    Considering Ilott had a full-face helmet on, it’s understandable that Kutcher didn’t recognize him, but it turns out the sentiment was shared.

    Callum Ilott finished eighth in the IndyCar GMR Grand Prix at Indianapolis. (Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    “Fun fact: I had no idea that was him, I was just thinking to myself that this guy sounds awfully familiar. Then when he was getting out I realized. Oopsie,” Ilott revealed in a tweet.

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    The 23-year-old Brit drives for the Juncos Hollinger Racing team and scored a career-best eighth-place finish in the IndyCar GMR Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday. He is set to make his rookie start at the Indy 500 on Memorial Day weekend.

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    Colton Herta wins wet IndyCar GMR Grand Prix

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    As Colton Herta set up his winning pass Saturday, all he could see were red flashing lights. He still charged forward.

    Herta won the IndyCar GMR Grand Prix in wet conditions. (AP)

    The 22-year-old California driver quickly darted to the inside of Pato O’Ward on a late restart, took the lead for good with nine laps to go and beat Simon Pagenaud to the finish line by 3.0983 seconds to win a wild, wacky, wet IndyCar Grand Prix.

    “Pure talent,” Herta joked when asked how he persevered for his first win of the season despite the incredibly challenging weather conditions. “The most interesting thing is you never have a car that handles great in the wet and great in the dry, but it happened today.”

    Getting to victory lane certainly wasn’t easy for Herta, who earned his first Indy win in his 10th series start at the track. He also became the first Honda driver to reach victory lane this season.

    But on Saturday, he made all the right calls.

    After qualifying 14th on the 27-car grid, he made the gutsy choice to switch from rain tires to dry tires just three laps into the race. While he initially struggled to keep the cold tires on the track and nearly spun out on Lap 4 when he got sideways in the 10th turn on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course, Herta never flinched.

    INDY 500 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 PACE CAR REVEALED

    Somehow he hung on, quickly taking the lead and advantage of a move that allowed him to go from 15th to first. He stayed near the front of the pack the rest of the race, leading 50 of 75 laps in a two-hour race that had just 53 minutes, 22 seconds of green flag time.

    Herta is sixth in the IndyCar season standings.  (AP)

    It came on a day race strategists and drivers were constantly changing plans because of rain or the threat of rain. And even when it appeared Herta made the wrong choice — like running on dry tires after Alexander Rossi and made an early switch back to rain tires — things worked out.

    “What I said is with the track conditions right now it’s probably wets, but it you think it’s going to be dry we’ll go with slicks,” Herta said referring to the first of two late pit stops. “Immediately when I got out there, I knew it was going to be tough so we came back in. Luckily, everybody followed our lead and did the wrong thing so we didn’t lose too many spots.”

    Pagenaud and pole-winner Will Power struggled to navigate the spray coming off the other cars. Neither could see well enough for long enough in the first IndyCar rain race with the aeroscreens to catch Herta.

    INDY 500 CAR WILL HELP BUILD HOMES FOR VETERANS

    Still, the the two three-time race winners and former teammates felt as if they too had accomplished something. Pagenaud, the French driver, gave Meyer Shank Racing its best finish of the season.

    “That was nuts. The racing was phenomenal and the strategy was the name of the game today,” he said. “Sometimes second feels like a win. I would have liked to win today, but we’ll probably celebrate tonight like it was a win.”

    Colton Herta has seven career IndyCar wins (AP)

    Power took the points lead away from defending series champ Alex Palou and posted Team Penske’s best finish.

    “At the end, you couldn’t see. I can’t imagine being back in 10th or something,” the Australian said. “Pretty crazy day, one to keep you on your toes and when to pick the right tire and don’t overdo it. Just survival.”

    Race organizers knew weather would be a factor.

    They moved the start time up about 30 minutes with the hope of a wet track. Instead the start was delayed — first because of nearby lightning in the area and then because of a steady light rain.

    The cooler, damper track changed everything. There were spins and crashes, even cars struggling to stay in line under caution. And nobody, not even the series’ top names, were immune.

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    Team Penske scrambled to get two-time series champ Josef Newgarden back on the course after his car was damaged in a Lap 17 crash. Power lost three spots on the first lap and never completely recovered and Scott McLaughlin, Penske’s third driver, lost the lead when he spun under caution.

    Six-time series champ Scott Dixon, the New Zealander who drives for Chip Ganassi Racing, ran out of fuel on pit lane. Dixon’s teammate, Palou of Spain, fell out of contention when he, like Rossi, made the move back to rain tires too early.

    O’Ward and Arrow McLaren SP teammate Felix Rosenqvist got tangled up in the first turn of Lap 42.

    “I knew we could do it,” Herta said. “Did I think we were going to win today in a normal dry race? No probably not. But we kind of adapted pretty well. It was a lot of fun.”

    GOOD BET?

    Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials opened the first on-site betting lounge in track history Saturday.

    The Caesars Sportsbook Lounge at Pagoda Plaza will remain throughout Indianapolis 500 practices, two days of qualifying and the May 29 race. Caesars Sportsbook also will sponsor the speedway’s remaining races this year.

    UP NEXT

    Teams and drivers aren’t going anywhere. Next up is the series marquee race, the Indianapolis 500 on May 29. Everyone gets a two-day break while the track is converted from a road course to the more traditional oval. Practice starts Tuesday and two days of qualifying are set for next weekend.

    Indy 500 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 pace car and driver revealed

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    The racing-inspired 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 will be leading the field at the biggest race of them all.

    (Chevrolet)

    The newest version of the sports car will serve as pace car for the Indy 500 on May 29, marking the Corvette’s 19th time in the role.

    (Chevrolet)

    The mid-engine coupe is a 70th Anniversary Edition version of the Z06, which is powered by a 670 hp 5.5-liter V8 that is the most powerful naturally-aspirated engine Chevrolet has ever built.

    (Chevrolet)

    Three identical cars will be prepared with special graphics packages and nine-time Indy 500 starter Sarah Fisher will serve as pace car driver.

    The winner of the race is traditionally given one of the cars, which will be supported by a fleet of Chevrolet Camaro Convertibles that will be used as “festival cars” during the month of May in and around at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

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    The Corvette has now been used as the pace car for three years running, the Z06 preceded by the Corvette Stingray Convertible and Coupe. 

    AN AMAZING STASH OF INDY 500 PACE CARS IS BEING AUCTIONED

    AJ Foyt’s Indy 500 car will help build homes for veterans

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    J.R. Hildebrand will be racing for victory and a good cause at this year’s Indy 500.

    (AJ Foyt Racing)

    His AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet will be wearing a special ABC Supply sponsorship livery aimed at raising money to help injured veterans.

    The scheme supports the Homes For Our Troops charitable organization, which builds homes for severely wounded veterans.

    (AJ Foyt Racing)

    ABC Supply will match up to $1 million in donations made to the organization between May 21 and Memorial Day, May 30, so Hildebrand is guaranteed to be a winner regardless of how he does in the race.

    “I think the fans will love it, and I think the fans will be so happy to see the American flag — especially with our team,” four-time Indy 500 winner A.J. Foyt said of the partnership.

    “I would like to thank ABC Supply for supporting Homes For Our Troops. It’s great.”

    (AJ Foyt Racing)

    Hildebrand has three top 10 finishes in the Indy 500 in his career, including a second-place result in his first race in 2011.

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    The team last won the marquee event with Kenny Brack behind the wheel in 1999.

    Colton Herta wins Long Beach IndyCar finale as Alex Palou claims season championship

    Alex Palou raised the Spanish flag over his head and hugged every teammate he could find. The first championship trophy of his professional career at last in his hands, he planted his lips on the Astor Cup and savored a dream come true.

    Indycar driver Colton Herta won the final two races of the IndyCar season. (Will Lester/MediaNews Group/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin via Getty Images)

    He spent two years racing in Japan, but it was IndyCar where he wanted to be and Palou simulated life as if he drove in America’s top open-wheel racing series. He’s now an IndyCar champion — his first title since karting as a teen — and the first Spaniard to claim the crown in series history.

    Palou finished fourth in an easy Sunday drive at the Grand Prix of Long Beach to cap a smooth and steady second season in IndyCar.

    “There were moments where I was just feeling like I was living my dream, and now I’m doing it,” Palou said after the race. “Oh yeah, 100% dream completed. Let’s get another one now.”

    Colton Herta won the race — Long Beach is considered his home track — for his second consecutive win and third of the season. Josef Newgarden finished second and Scott Dixon, the six-time and reigning champion, finished third before turning the IndyCar crown over to Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Palou.

    The 24-year-old had never before seen Long Beach before he arrived this weekend — the historic course was canceled last year in the pandemic — but his consistency since winning the season-opener in his first race driving for Ganassi had him in solid position. His 35-point lead meant a finish of 11th or better would win him the title, and once challenger Pato O’Ward was knocked out with a mechanical problem, Palou just needed to make it to the finish.

    It capped a remarkable run in which Palou earned his break a year ago with Dale Coyne Racing then manifested his childhood dream to race for a championship by introducing himself to Ganassi at the Indianapolis 500. He moved into Ganassi’s No. 10 this year, won three races, finished second in the Indy 500 and led the standings 12 of 16 weeks.

    “Chip told me when I joined that I had to win a championship, so that’s not too much pressure,” Palou joked. “He likes winners. If you are not one, you are in trouble.”

    After climbing his way through the European ranks, Palou raced two years in Japan but had not won a title since competing in go-karts as a teenager in Spain.

    “His apprentice program into racing most recently was in Japan, so I think he brings a lot of that Japanese mentality to the team, which a lot of us find refreshing,” Ganassi said. “He brought a certain fortitude that you see in that part of the world. And you know, he didn’t turn a wheel wrong all year.”

    Palou has now joined an exclusive club of all-stars in Ganassi’s  elite “I like winners” club. The title was the 14th in American open-wheel racing for Ganassi among six drivers and came 25 years after Jimmy Vasser gave the organization its first championship.

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    Palou joins Vasser, Alex Zanardi, Juan Pablo Montoya, Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon as Ganassi open-wheel champions; he’s the first Ganassi champion since Montoya in 1999 not named Franchitti or Dixon, who combined for nine titles from 2008 through last year.

    Franchitti is now the Ganassi driver coach and Palou is considered the best driver in the No. 10 since a head injury forced Franchitti into an early 2013 retirement. Palou is the first Ganassi driver since Franchitti to beat Dixon in the season standings.

    “I think he’s raised the bar for all of us this year to keep pushing,” Dixon said. “It definitely feels like kind of the 2009 through sort of ’12, ’13 period with Dario. Super proud of what the 10 car has done. Super proud of Alex. Man, he’s done a tremendous job this year.”

    Palou won the championship by 38 points over Newgarden, who bumped one spot ahead of O’Ward once O’Ward was eliminated.

    UNLUCKY O’WARD

    O’Ward was eliminated from title contention when his drive shaft broke because of contact on the very first lap of the race.

    O’Ward needed Palou to have a disastrous day to become IndyCar’s first Mexican champion. But the 22-year-old was frustrated all weekend, even though he had vowed to pull all the stops to disrupt the championship race.

    He was unhappy with his car in practice Friday, then furious Saturday when an IndyCar ruling prevented him from advancing to the final round of qualifying. That put O’Ward in eighth at the start of the race — in traffic that led to a first-lap disaster. He was spun from behind by Ed Jones just minutes into the race while running eighth.

    “It’s not the first time he’s hit us,” O’Ward said. “I just wish he could use his head a little bit more, at least respect the guys that are fighting the championship.”

    As O’Ward slowed his car on the track, Arrow McLaren SP chief Zak Brown threw his arms up in disgust on the team timing stand. Some six hours earlier, Lando Norris lost a chance at his first Formula One victory when the McLaren driver slid off a wet course in Russia as the late leader.

    “Definitely not a great day, both over here and in Russia, with such high hopes,” Brown said. “Pretty disappointing that Pato got taken out by a bit of an amateur move before the race even got started.”

    O’Ward won two races this year, his second full season in IndyCar, and earned an F1 test with McLaren scheduled for November.

    “I’m proud of the team. I’m proud of myself,” O’Ward said. “I’m looking forward to next year. I think we have a great baseline to start off from and see if we can get some more wins and challenge for a chance for another title.”

    RINUS RETURNS

    Ed Carpenter Racing announced before the race that 21-year-old Rinus VeeKay will return for a third season. VeeKay scored his first career victory earlier this year on the road course at Indianapolis and followed it with a front-row starting spot a week later for the Indianapolis 500.

    The Dutch driver peaked at fourth in the standings this year but missed a race because he broke his collarbone in a bicycle crash. VeeKay did not finish higher than 16th in the seven races since his injury.

    The third season makes VeeKay the longest-tenured full-time driver in ECR’s 10-year history. Carpenter, the team owner, only runs ovals and shares the car with another driver for road and street courses.

    Carpenter has not said if Conor Daly will return in that role next season, but Daly still has ECR on his list and does not expect to put a full-season schedule together with one single team. Ryan Hunter-Reay has been mentioned as a candidate at ECR.

    Nashville-born Indycar champ Josef Newgarden previews ‘surreal’ Music City Grand Prix with tips for tourists

    The Music City is looking more like Motown this summer.

    The Tennessee capital has already played host to the first NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway and the season finale of the SRX Racing series at the historic Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway and is now set to host Indycar on the streets of downtown.

    (Music City Grand Prix)

    The inaugural Music City Grand Prix on August 8 will take place on a street circuit that loops from the parking lot of Titans Stadium to downtown over the Cumberland river via the Korean War Veterans Memorial bridge.

    Two-time Indycar season champion Josef Newgarden was born in Nashville and lives there today. Growing up he never dreamed of being a race quite like this.

    “It’s very surreal,” Newgarden said during an exclusive interview on The Fox Garage.

    “I can’t wait to showcase the city of Nashville with Indycar on it.”

    (Music City Grand Prix)

    Newgarden is coming off picking up his first win of the season on July 4 at Mid-Ohio and currently fourth in the standings. He’s optimistic about his chances of winning a third title with six races to go.

    “I feel pretty confident where we are speed-wise,” he said.

    “We need to be in that top three group all the way to the finish, which is something I think we’re capable of.”

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    As for what out of town fans coming to the race should do while they’re in Nashville, his best advice is to just soak the city in.

    “Stay close to downtown, go check out pretty much anything and everything if you’ve never been here,” he said, and not just the honky-tonks.

    “I think if you can find yourself south side of town in 12 South, that’s a really fun part of the area, great restaurants. The east side of Nashville is super unique, you’re going to find a lot of cool spots over there, too.”

    As far as local treats are concerned, there’s one you shouldn’t miss … if you’re up for it.

    “Maybe fit a trip to Hattie B’s, or something like that, get some hot chicken, then you’re going to be doing Nashville just fine.”

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    Simona de Silvestro returning to Indy 500 with first female-operated racing team

    Female-led team taking on Indy 500

    Racing driver Simona de Silvestro is returning to the Indy 500 with the female-led Paretta Autosport, which aims to be the first team run and primarily staffed by women to compete in the race.

    She’s coming back home again to Indiana.

    Swiss pro racing driver Simona de Silvestro turned her first laps at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in early April during a test session ahead of the start of the IndyCar season.

    (Paretta Autosport)

    The 2010 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year hasn’t been on the track since 2015, when she finished 19th, but put in an impressive return performance with a 223.458 mph lap that was 21st of the 31 drivers who took part.

    “The first few laps I did at the speedway, I think your brain doesn’t really get how quick it is. It’s a bit overwhelming because it is very fast,” de Silvestro told The Fox Garage.

    (Paretta Autosport)

    De Silvestro won’t be at the season-opener at Barber Motorsports Park. She’s only competing in the 500 this year, but that one race will carry even more significance than usual. She’ll be driving for a new team, Paretta Autosport, that’s aiming to the first run by a woman, with a female driver and mostly female crew to compete in The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

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    Team principal Beth Paretta is a longtime motorsports executive who was the director of Fiat-Chrysler’s SRT Motorsports division when Dodge won its last NASCAR Cup Series championship season in 2012. She’s been trying for several years to put together a program like this to help promote women in racing and S.T.E.M. education for girls and has forged a partnership with Team Penske to make it happen, with sponsorship from Rocket Pro TPO and MoneyLion.

    “I think it’s an amazing opportunity for myself and the other women that are going to be involved,” de Silvestro said.

    The 32-year-old has three top-20 finishes in five starts at the speedway, but says the Penske relationship is huge.

    “As a driver, this is something that you kind of dream of,” she said.

    Last year’s race was the first Indy 500 since 1999 that didn’t have a female driver in the field and de Silvestro is the only entry so far this year, which should shine an even brighter light on her team’s efforts.

    “The goal is really to make this team bigger and to create even more opportunities out there.”

    Sato takes Indy 500 for second time in career

    Takuma Sato, who won the Indianapolis 500 in 2017, just won the 104th running of the legendary race.

    The race finished under caution after Spencer Pigot crashed into the Turn 4 wall with five laps to go.

    Sato started from third and ran in the top five most of the race, before taking the lead on lap 173 and holding off 2008 winner Scott Dixon, who led 111 laps on his way to a second-place finish.

    The 43-year-old Japanese driver is the only Asian to have won the Indy 500 and was scheduled to be one of the torchbearers for the postponed Tokyo Olympics in July.

    “I hope this give a little boost for energy, and thank you for the support,” he said to his fans in Japan from victory lane.

    This was the first time the Indy 500 has been held in August, after it was postponed from its traditional Memorial Day weekend date due to the coronavirus pandemic. No fans were allowed to attend.

    Sato was involved in a pit lane incident on lap 124, when front-runner Alexander Rossi pulled out of his stall and hit Sato’s Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda, but didn’t damage it. Rossi, who was also challenging for the win at the time, was given a penalty and later crashed out of the race.

    The unusual day began with new

    Check back for updates…

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