Indy 500 2015: TV Schedule, Top Contenders and Predictions for Historic Race
The entire IndyCar world has descended on Indiana to prepare for the 2015 Indianapolis 500 that will be run on May 24. It's the most prestigious race in the country, bringing with it a majesty and pageantry like no other event in the sport.
It's also the one race all drivers hope to win at least once in their careers. This year's field looks particularly strong with last year's champion Ryan Hunter-Reay, Scott Dixon and Will Power looking strong in practice sessions.
Power enters Indianapolis Motor Speedway with plenty of confidence after winning the Angie's List Grand Prix on this track one week ago.
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Yet the beauty of racing is that once the green flag drops to start the race, anything can happen. One driver can put together a perfect run to shock the world, or a driver can have an engine fail that prevents a top contender from finishing.
Whatever is going to happen, there will be plenty of time to analyze that. The first order of business is to discuss who the top contenders are and what can be expected from The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
| Date | Start Time (ET) | Network |
| Sunday, May 24 | 12 p.m. | ABC |
Contenders
Scott Dixon
The 34-year-old Dixon has had an inconsistent career at the Indianapolis 500. He won the race in 2008 and finished in the top six each of the next four years, but he dropped to 14th in 2013 and 29th in 2014.
Some might use those numbers as a reason to bet against Dixon this year. However, as stats from the Indy 500 practice sessions show, he's found another level again with a lap time of 38.6264 seconds in the seventh practice period.
On Friday, per Curt Cavin and Blake Schuster of The Indianapolis Star, Dixon was one of only five drivers to break the 230-mph barrier:
"With the IndyCar Series allowing Chevrolet and Honda to increase engine boost by about 40 horsepower, only six drivers reached the 230 mph bracket, the month standard set by Carlos Munoz earlier in the week. Team Penske's Simon Pagenaud led the way at 230.698 mph.
The others at that threshold: Three Ganassi Racing drivers (Scott Dixon, Tony Kanaan and Sage Karam), Andretti Autosport's Marco Andretti and Pagenaud's teammate, Will Power.
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That does come with a caveat, as Jeff Olson of USA Today reported that IndyCar ordered teams to "lower turbocharger boost levels to their pre-qualifying levels" due to a series of crashes on the track during practice sessions.
Dixon, as well as every other driver, will have to acclimate to the change. He's been erratic this season with two finishes outside the top 10, one victory at Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and a third-place finish at the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama.
It's been hard to figure out who the real Dixon is anymore, but the Indianapolis 500 stage tends to bring out the best in people. He has shown glimpses of breaking out in short bursts at practice so far, giving him the necessary push to make a run next Sunday.
Ryan Hunter-Reay
Sure, it's easy to say the driver who won last year's race is a contender again. That doesn't make it any less true for Hunter-Reay, who also finished third here in 2013 before getting the biggest win of his career.
The only person who doesn't seem to believe Hunter-Reay is a serious contender this year is himself. He told Schuster after Saturday's rain-shortened session that he "can't confidently say I've got a shot at it."
It was an interesting comment for Hunter-Reay to make, as Matt Glenesk of The Indianapolis Star noted an early qualifying speed put him in the lead for the pole:
Hunter-Reay's results so far this year would seem to support his assertion that he's not going to win. The 34-year-old has yet to win in 2015 and has one top-five finish at Alabama in April. Last year, for example, he had one win and two runner-up finishes under his belt coming into the Indianapolis 500.
Despite the current results not seeming to work in his favor, it's hard to look past Hunter-Reay's tremendous run last year—highlighted by his brilliant move to get ahead of Helio Castroneves with four laps to go—and the strong practice run before the rains turned everything upside down.
Helio Castroneves
It's impossible to make a list of Indianapolis 500 contenders without listing Castroneves. Even though he hasn't won this race since 2009, he came within an eyelash of capturing a fourth title last year and hasn't finished outside the top 10 since 2011.
Castroneves was one of the drivers to endure a scary crash during practice sessions, going airborne on Wednesday, but he was fortunately able to walk away from it without any injuries.
Just to prove there were no lingering effects from the accident, Castroneves put together the fastest practice time of any driver at 233.474 miles per hour before the rain stopped things on Saturday, per AutoSport.com's Mark Glendenning.
Castroneves is one driver whose season results don't seem to matter when he starts up the engine at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He didn't have a win in 2009 prior to taking the checkered flag at this event for the third time.
It's not like Castroneves has fallen off a cliff this year. He has finished second in two races (Grand Prix of Louisiana, Grand Prix of Long Beach) and was on the pole for the Grand Prix of Alabama. He just hasn't put everything together long enough to taste the sweet nectar of victory.
But if there's a race that will get Castroneves over the hump, it's the Indianapolis 500. With Dario Franchitti retired, he's the name most synonymous with success at this event with three career wins.
Prediction
As tempting as it would be to go away from the list of top contenders to predict a winner, especially with names like Juan Montoya and Tony Kanaan also in the mix, Castroneves always sticks out because his resume here is so good and consistent.
There's going to be as many as 34 cars in the field and all it takes is one wrong move to change the complexion of an entire race. That's what makes these things so fragile, yet Castroneves never seems to get rattled under any circumstance.
A victory for Castroneves would also be historic, as it would give the 40-year-old a record-tying fourth Indianapolis 500 title. Al Unser and A.J. Foyt are the only members of that class so far, but after 28 years, it's time to add a new name to that list.
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