| Indianapolis Motor Speedway | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis 500 | |||||
| Sanctioning body | IndyCar | ||||
| Season | 2025 IndyCar season | ||||
| Date | May 25, 2025 [1] | ||||
| Pre-race ceremonies | |||||
| Pace car | Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 | ||||
| Pace car driver | Michael Strahan [2] | ||||
| TV in the United States | |||||
| Network | FOX [3] | ||||
| Announcers | Will Buxton, James Hinchcliffe, Townsend Bell | ||||
| Chronology | |||||
| |||||
The 2025 Indianapolis 500 (branded as the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge) is an IndyCar Series event scheduled to be held on Sunday, May 25, 2025, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The race will be part of the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season. The month of May activities will formally began with the IndyCar Grand Prix on the combined road course. The race will be broadcast on FOX for the first time in its history.
Josef Newgarden is the two-time defending race winner. Kyle Larson will attempt another "Double Duty" as he was unable to do so in 2024, as that year's Coca-Cola 600 was called for rain. [4] [5] [6] The 2025 race marks the first year of hybrid energy recovery system powertrains at Indianapolis. The new ERC powertrains were first introduced in the series in July 2024 at Mid-Ohio. [7]
All entries utilize a spec Dallara IR18 chassis with universal aero kit and 2020-adopted aeroscreen. Honda (HRC) and Chevrolet (Ilmor) are the current engine providers. Firestone is the exclusive tire supplier. There are currently 33 confirmed entries, including seven former winners and four race rookies.
Rookie rules for the Indianapolis 500 include the mandate that a driver pass a supervised high-speed oval test before he/she is allowed to participate in the official Rookie Orientation Program (ROP) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. [38] Approved venues for the initial high-speed oval track test include Texas Motor Speedway, Homestead–Miami Speedway, and a few other select venues. [39]
The Rookie Orientation Program at Indianapolis consists of three phases. For phase 1, each driver is required to complete ten laps between 205–210 mph (330–338 km/h), while demonstrating satisfactory car control, proper racing line, and safe interaction with other cars on the circuit. The laps do not have to be consecutive. Phase 2 is fifteen laps between 210–215 mph (338–346 km/h), and phase 3 is fifteen laps over 215 mph (346 km/h). Veteran drivers that have not competed in an IndyCar oval race since the previous year's Indy 500 are required to take a refresher test. The refresher test consists of phase 2 and phase 3 of the aforementioned rookie test. [40]
A private Rookie Orientation Program session was held October 10, 2024 for Nolan Siegel of Arrow McLaren. [41] Siegel had passed ROP the previous May, however, he failed to qualify for the race, necessitating a re-take of the rookie test. Siegel passed the three-phase test without incident.
A two-day offseason test was held On October 10–11, 2024. Eleven teams were in attendance to evaluate the hybrid energy recovery system powertrains which were adopted midway through the 2024 IndyCar season. On Thursday, Josef Newgarden (Team Penske), Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren), and Álex Palou (Ganassi) primarily conducted tire tests for Firestone. On Friday, all eleven teams participated. Álex Palou (224.342 mph) turned the fastest lap of the day. No incidents were reported. [42]
The race will be carried live by FOX for the first time, as the network will take over from NBC, who had been the television broadcaster since 2019. [3] On January 14, 2025, FOX announced their primary broadcast team for the full IndyCar season, with Will Buxton serving as lead commentator and James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell retaining their analyst roles they had previously held with NBC. [43]
