104th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge Fast Facts
Event weeks: Wednesday, Aug. 12 – Sunday, Aug. 23
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a 2.5-mile oval
Race distance: 200 laps / 500 miles
Media Links: Entry List | Trackside Book | Indy 500 Media Guide
Firestone tire allotment: Thirty sets for use throughout the event
Twitter: @IMS, @IndyCar, #Indy500, #IndyCar
Event website: www.ims.com
INDYCAR website: www.IndyCar.com
2019 race winner: Simon Pagenaud (No. 22 Menards Team Penske Chevrolet)
2019 NTT P1 Award winner: Simon Pagenaud (No. 22 Menards Team Penske Chevrolet), 2 minutes, 36.5271 seconds, 229.992 mph (four laps)
NBC/NBCSN broadcasts (all times Eastern): Qualifying, 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, NBC (live). Fast Nine Shootout, 1 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 16, NBC (live). Practice, 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 16, NBCSN (live). Final Practice, 11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 21, NBCSN (live). Race: 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Aug. 23 (live). Leigh Diffey is the lead announcer for the NBC broadcasts alongside analysts Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy.
NBC Sports Gold livestreaming: All Indianapolis 500 practice sessions and all of Saturday’s qualifying will stream live on INDYCAR Pass on NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports’ direct-to-consumer livestreaming product.
INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the chief announcer alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. All NTT INDYCAR SERIES races are broadcast live on the INDYCAR Radio Network, Sirius 211, XM 205, IndyCar.com and on the INDYCAR Mobile APP powered by NTT DATA. Live coverage of NTT INDYCAR SERIES qualifying is available on Sirius 211, XM 205, IndyCar.com and the INDYCAR Mobile app.
At-track schedule (all times local):
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 12 (All times are Eastern)
11 a.m.-1 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 veterans practice, NBC Sports Gold
1-3 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 Rookie Orientation and Refresher Program, NBC Sports Gold
3-5:30 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice, NBC Sports Gold
THURSDAY, AUG. 13
11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice, NBC Sports Gold
FRIDAY, AUG. 14
11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice, NBC Sports Gold
5:45 p.m. – Qualifying Draw
SATURDAY, AUG. 15
8:30-9:30 a.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice (two groups), NBC Sports Gold
11 a.m.-4:50 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 qualifying, NBC Sports Gold (3 p.m. NBC)
SUNDAY, AUG. 16
11-11:30 a.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice (Fast 9 eligible cars), NBC Sports Gold
1:15-2:15 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 Fast 9 Shootout, NBC (Live)
3:30 p.m.-6 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 practice, NBC Sports Gold
FRIDAY, AUG. 21
11 a.m.-1 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 final practice, NBCSN
11 a.m.-4:50 p.m. – Indianapolis 500 qualifying, NBC Sports Gold (3 p.m. NBC)
SUNDAY, AUG. 23
1 p.m. – NBC on air
1:30 p.m. – Driver Introductions
2:23 p.m. – “Drivers, start your engines”
2:30 p.m. – 104th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge (200 laps/500 miles), NBC (Live)
Race notes:
* The Indianapolis 500 will be the 104th 500-mile Indy car race conducted on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s oval. Ray Harroun won the inaugural race in 1911. Simon Pagenaud won the race in 2019 to become the first Frenchman to win the Indianapolis 500 in more than 100 years and give Roger Penske his 18th Indianapolis 500 win.
* Eight drivers entered have won the Indianapolis 500, the most since a record 10 drivers qualified for the 1992 race. Helio Castroneves has won the race three times (2001, 2002 and 2009) while Scott Dixon (2008), Tony Kanaan (2013), Ryan Hunter-Reay (2014), Alexander Rossi (2016), Takuma Sato (2017) and Will Power (2018) and Simon Pagenaud (2019) are the other former winners entered.
* There have been four different winners in the first six NTT INDYCAR SERIES races this season. Scott Dixon (Texas Motor Speedway, GMR Grand Prix, Road America-1), Felix Rosenqvist (Road America-2), Simon Pagenaud (Iowa-1) and Josef Newgarden (Iowa-2) have won races in 2020.
* Tony Kanaan has finished in the top four in four of the last nine Indianapolis 500s, including his win in 2013.
* Five Indianapolis 500 rookie drivers are entered: Oliver Askew, Dalton Kellett, Pato O’Ward, Alex Palou and Rinus VeeKay.
* Twenty-one drivers have won the Indianapolis 500 from the pole – most recently Simon Pagenaud in 2019.
* Team Penske has 18 wins at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the most of any team. Andretti Autosport has five wins while Chip Ganassi Racing has won four times. A.J. Foyt Enterprises has won twice.
* Scott Dixon has a chance to join Will Power and Simon Pagenaud as a winner on both the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and the famed 2.5-mile oval in the same season. Will Power accomplished the feat in 2018, while Pagenaud did it last year.
* The Indianapolis 500 will be the fourth oval race of the 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule. The previous oval races were won by Scott Dixon (Texas Motor Speedway), Simon Pagenaud (Iowa-1) and Josef Newgarden (Iowa-2). The remaining two oval races will take place at World Wide Technology Raceway (Aug. 29-30).
Sources: Kate Davis/INDYCAR PR