It is the most famous and one of the oldest IndyCar races as the IndyCar Circuit heads to the Brickyard for the Indianapolis 500. It is time to continue our IndyCar Series odds series with an Indianapolis 500 prediction and pick.
The Indianapolis 500 first was held in 1911. It is held on the rounded rectangle track of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The track is 2.5 miles long in an oval, with four identical turns and two straightaways. Like other major racing circuits, the Indianapolis 500 is held near the start of the racing season, much like NASCAR and Daytona. This year, it is the sixth event in the 17-race season. The Indianapolis 500 is steeped in tradition, from the three-wide start to the bottle of milk on victory lane. It is also part of the triple crown of motorsports. The Indianapolis 500 joins the Monaco Grand Prix, which will be held earlier in the day, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in that regard. It is also held on the same day as the Coca-Cola 600 for NASCAR.
Here are the IndyCar Odds, courtesy of DraftKings.
IndyCar Odds: Indianapolis Odds
Scott McLaughlin: +400
Josef Newgarden: +550
Will Power: +650
Kyle Larson: +700
Alexander Rossi: +1000
Pato O'Ward: +1100
Alex Palou: +1200
Colton Herta: +1500
Scott Dixon: +1800
Santino Ferrucci: +1800
Rinus Veekay: +1800
Felix Rosenqvist: +2500
Kyle Kirkwood: +2500
Takuma Sato: +3000
Helio Castroneves: +4000
Ryan Hunter-Reay: +4000
Marco Andretti: +6000
How to Watch the Indianapolis 500
TV: NBC
Time: 12:35 PM ET/ 9:35 AM PT
*Watch the Indy500 LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Favorites To Win the Indianapolis 500
Scott McGlaughlin will be on the pole for the Indy 500. He is currently in sixth in the points standing in the IndyCar series but does have a win this year. McGlaughlin won two races ago at the Children of Alabama Indy Grand Prix. He also won that race in 2022. In between the two wins, McGlaughlin has finished in the top five seven other times, with four second-place finishes. Still, he has not had a lot of success at the Indy500. Last year McGlaughlin was 14th after starting 14th. In 2022, he would finish 29th and in 2021 it was a 20th-placed finish.
Josef Newgarden is the defending champion here at the Indianapolis 500. He took the checkered flag here last year after starting 17th. This was a nice rebound from back-to-back bad races at Indy for Newgarden. He was outside the top ten in both 2021 and 2022. Still, this year has been a struggle for Newgarden. He is currently 17th in points, after being fifth or better every year since 2016, including winning the series in 2017 and 2019. Further, his best finish of the year is a fourth-placed finish. Last year, after winning at Indy, Newgarden won two more races and had three other top fives.
Will Power starts second in the Indy 500 this year. Power has been racing great this year. He is coming off back. to back runner-up finishes, while he has a runner-up finish in his first race of the year as well. He is currently second in the points standings. Will Power is also a former winner of the Indy 500, winning this race in 2018. The next year, he would finish fifth. Since then, it has been a struggle for Power. Power has been 14th or worse in each of the last four Indy 500 races. Still, there is one stark contrast. Since 2014, Power has started inside the top ten six times. In those races, he was in the top ten in five of them with a win and runner-up.
Kyle Larson is fast. He is consistently at the top of the odds board in NASCAR. Larson will attempt to compete in both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday. The last racer to complete all the laps of both races was Tony Stewart in 2001, as he finished sixth in the Indy 500 and third in the Coca-Cola 600. Robby Gordon was close in 2002, finishing 399 of 400 laps in the Coca-Cola 600. Larson will be a favorite in the evening race and is one here as well. Still, the best finish for someone doing the double is sixth place. That has been done by three different drivers.
Sleepers To Win Indianapolis 500
Alex Palou won the 2021 and 2023 IndyCar series titles and is first in points this year. He is coming off a win at the Indy Road course as well. This year, Palou has not finished outside the top five, with two wins, a third place, a fourth palce, and a fifth-place finish. Palou is racing great but is seventh on the odds board currently. Palou also has shown he can't make up ground in this race. He started on the pole last year, but after an incident on pit row, would find himself at the back of the gifted. Still, Palou finished fourth in the race. Palou has yet to win at Indy but has been in the top ten on each of the last three tries.
Colton Herta has already shown he can perform well at this track. In the practice sessions, he has been great, sitting with the third fastest lap. Further, Herta is currently third in points and has been in the top ten four different ties this year. Herta also has two top-five finishes on the season. In 2019, Herta became the youngest driver to ever win an Indy Car race, and now he looks to add an Indianapolis 500 to his records.
Indianapolis 500 Prediction & Pick
There are a few factors to consider when looking at this race. First is the weather. With the potential of rain, there is the potential that Kyle Larson would need to miss the race to make the NASCAR race in the evening. Further, a slightly wet track would favor some of the more experienced drivers. The second is positioning. It is rare to see someone from the back of the pack work their way up to a win, but it has been done. Finally, the hot hand. Scott McGlaughlin has been solid this year, leading the most laps on the season. Will Power and Alex Palou also both come in racing wonderfully this year.
Indianapolis 500 Prediction & Pick: Will Power Top 5 (-130), Alex Palou Top 5 (+110), Colton Herta Top 5 (+160)