The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis. The event is traditionally held over Memorial Day weekend, usually the last weekend of May. It is contested as part of the IndyCar Series, the top level of American open-wheel car racing, a formula colloquially known as "Indy car racing". The track itself is nicknamed the "Brickyard", as the racing surface was paved in brick in the fall of 1909. One yard of brick remains exposed at the start/finish line. The event, billed as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing, is considered part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport along with the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix, with which it typically shares a date.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 and formerly the home of the United States Grand Prix. It is located six miles (9.7 km) west of Downtown Indianapolis.
Indy 500 is a nickname for the Indianapolis 500, a famous automobile race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval track, first held in 1911.
Auto Club Speedway is a 2.000 mi (3.219 km), D-shaped oval superspeedway in unincorporated San Bernardino County, California, near Fontana. It has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1997. It was also previously used for open wheel racing events. The racetrack is located 47 mi (76 km) east of Los Angeles and is near the former locations of Ontario Motor Speedway and Riverside International Raceway. The track is owned and operated by NASCAR. The speedway is served by the nearby Interstate 10 and Interstate 15 freeways as well as a Metrolink station located behind the backstretch.
Oval track racing is a form of closed-circuit motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of traffic is almost universally counter-clockwise. Oval tracks are dedicated motorsport circuits, used predominantly in the United States. They often have banked turns and some, despite the name, are not precisely oval, and the shape of the track can vary.
Ontario Motor Speedway was a motorsport venue located in Ontario, California. It was the first and only automobile racing facility built to accommodate major races sanctioned by all of the four dominant racing sanctioning bodies: USAC for open-wheel oval car races; NASCAR for a 500-mile (800 km) oval stock car races; NHRA for drag races; and FIA for Formula One road course races. Additionally, several motorcycle races were held at the track. Constructed in less than two years, the track opened in August 1970 and was considered state of the art at the time.
The U.S. 500 was an automobile race sanctioned by CART, held at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, United States. The event was held from 1973 to 1986, and again in 1996 as an alternative to the Indianapolis 500 held by the rival Indy Racing League (IRL).
Jaques Lazier is an American former race car driver. He is the younger brother of 1996 Indianapolis 500 champion Buddy Lazier and son of former Indy racer Bob Lazier.
The 2004 IRL IndyCar Series was dominated by two teams, Andretti Green Racing and Rahal Letterman Racing. While there was great parity in 2003 between Honda and Toyota powered teams, in 2004 Honda began to outshine Toyota bringing their teams Penske Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing down with it, leaving Scott Dixon winless and in 10th place in his attempt to defend his 2003 championship.
The 2003 IRL IndyCar Series brought some of the biggest changes in its history. The league adopted the name IndyCar Series, after a settlement with CART prohibiting its use had expired. Several former CART teams brought their full operations to the IRL, most notably major squads Chip Ganassi Racing and Andretti Green Racing, as well as former CART engine manufacturers Toyota and Honda, replacing Infiniti who shifted its efforts to the new feeder series Infiniti Pro Series. Many of the IRL's old guard including Robbie Buhl, Greg Ray, and Buddy Lazier had difficulty competing in this new manufacturer-driven landscape. The league also added its first international race this year, taking over the CART date at Twin Ring Motegi.
The Freedom 100 was an automobile race held annually at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, as part of the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires. The event was a support race for the IndyCar Series Indianapolis 500, and since 2005, it was held on the Friday preceding the Indianapolis 500, the day known as "Carb Day".
The IndyCar Series has held racing events at Texas Motor Speedway, near Fort Worth, Texas, since 1997. The races have had a variety of different title sponsors and distances over the years, and therefore the Texas round has changed names frequently. The latest event, held in 2023, was called the PPG 375.
The 1984 CART PPG Indy Car World Series season, the sixth in the CART era of U.S. open-wheel racing, consisted of 16 races, beginning in Long Beach, California on March 31 and concluding in Las Vegas, Nevada on November 10. The PPG Indy Car World Series Drivers' Champion was Mario Andretti and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Rick Mears. Rookie of the Year was Roberto Guerrero. The 68th Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by the USAC, but counted in the CART points standings.
The 1997 CART PPG World Series season was the nineteenth in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 17 races, beginning in Homestead, Florida on March 2 and concluding in Fontana, California on September 28. The PPG CART World Series Drivers' Champion was Alex Zanardi. Rookie of the Year was Patrick Carpentier. Mercedes-Benz won their first and only CART engine-manufacturer's title.
The 1996 PPG Indy Car World Series season was the eighteenth in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 16 races, beginning in Homestead, Florida on March 3 and concluding in Monterey, California on September 8. This was the first season after the split with the Indy Racing League and the last year that CART operated as "IndyCar," with the trademark reverting to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Indianapolis 500 was replaced by the U.S. 500, held in Brooklyn, Michigan.
The 1979 USAC Championship Car season consisted of seven races, beginning in Ontario, California on March 25 and concluding in West Allis, Wisconsin on August 12. The USAC National Champion was A. J. Foyt and the Indianapolis 500 winner was Rick Mears. With the exception of the Indianapolis 500, most top drivers instead competed in races sanctioned by CART.
The MAVTV 500 was an IndyCar Series race held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The event represented a continuous lineage of open wheel oval racing in the Southern California-area that dates back to 1970. Since 2012, the event had been sponsored by MAVTV, a motorsports cable channel owned by Lucas Oil.
The 2002 The 500 presented by Toyota was the eighteenth round of the 2002 CART FedEx Champ Car World Series season, held on November 3, 2002 at the California Speedway in Fontana, California, United States.
The 2012 MAVTV 500 IndyCar World Championships was the 15th and final showdown of the 2012 IndyCar Series season. The event took place on September 15, at the 2.000-mile (3.219 km) Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. It was the first IndyCar race at this facility since 2005, the first 500-mile open-wheel race outside Indianapolis since the CART-sanctioned 2002 The 500 at Fontana, and the first 500-mile IndyCar Series race outside Indianapolis.
The Triple Crown is a "championship" consisting of three 500 Mile Super Speedway races on the IndyCar calendar. Traditionally, the crown jewel races were events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Pocono Raceway, and a third race at either Ontario Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, or Auto Club Speedway. In some years a driver would be recognized as a "Triple Crown Champion" if he/she scored the most points in the three races; Al Unser being the only driver to win all three 500 mile races during the 1978 IndyCar Season. Even though three super speedways and three 500 mile races have been featured in many seasons, only in 1971–1989 and 2013–2015 were "Triple Crowns" recognized.
