More than 350,000 fans packed Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday as the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 officially went green under threatening skies.
Curt Cignetti, fresh off leading Indiana Hoosiers football to a national championship season, paced the field to green in front of a sold-out crowd at the world’s most famous speedway.
Álex Palou started from pole after posting a four-lap qualifying average of 232.248 mph last weekend, earning his second career Indy 500 pole position. The reigning Indianapolis 500 winner and four-time IndyCar champion entered Sunday as the clear favorite to drink the milk again in Victory Lane.
The race began shortly before 12:45 p.m. ET after a lengthy pre-race ceremony that included military tributes, flyovers and the traditional singing of “Back Home Again in Indiana.”
Now, the biggest concern may be the weather.
Rain lingered around the Indianapolis area throughout the afternoon, and teams monitored the radar closely as officials hoped to complete all 200 laps without a major delay. Weather already disrupted qualifying week and remained one of the biggest storylines entering race day.
For now, though, the Greatest Spectacle in Racing is officially underway.
