Takuma Sato takes his 2nd Indianapolis 500 win; race ends under caution after Pigot crash
SPEEDWAY, Ind. (WISH) — A historic running of the Indianapolis 500 ended Sunday evening at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The coronavirus pandemic forced changes to the iconic race, including no spectators and a race in August as opposed to Memorial Day weekend.
5:38 p.m. – Takuma Sato wins the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500. The race ended under a caution because of Pigot’s crash.
Sato’s first 500 win was in 2017.
5:34 p.m. – Spencer Pigot has crashed with five laps left in the Indy 500.
4:55 p.m. – With 50 laps to go of the race, here’s the standings:
- Dixon
- Sato
- Rahal
- Newgarden
- Ferrucci
- O’Ward
- Herta
- Power
- Kanaan
- Harvey
4:47 p.m. – Alexander Rossi, who battled for laps with leader Scott Dixon, has crashed and is out of the race.
4:40 p.m. – Simon Pagenaud, winner of the 2019 Indy 500, pits after getting damage during restart.
4:36 p.m. – Rossi goes to the back of the field of cars as he’s penalized for an “unsafe release” from pit where he swiped Sato’s car.
4:23 p.m. – Rookie Alex Palou has crashed in Lap 123.
4:03 p.m. – Halfway through the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500, five cars are out of the race due to crashes: Ed Carpenter, James Davison, Dalton Kellett, Oliver Askew and Conor Daly. Here’s the standings:
- Dixon
- Rossi
- Sato
- O’Ward
- Ferrucci
- Andretti
- Newgarden
- Rahal
- Hunter-Reay
- Kanaan
3:54 p.m. – As the race goes back into green flag, Rookie Oliver Askew hits the wall; Conor Daly spins. Both out of their cars and out of the race.
3:44 p.m. – Rookie Dalton Kellett is out after hitting the wall at Turn 3, and the race is back on caution at Lap 84.
3:34 p.m. – Rinus VeeKay and Sage Karam are both penalized for issues in the pit lane. VeeKay gets a stop and go penalty for hitting a member of personnel in the pit. Karam was penalized for missing his pit.
3:22 p.m. – News 8’s Olivia Ray talked to Marcus Ericsson about his crash.
3:17 p.m. – At Lap 50, Scott Dixon leads the race:
- Dixon
- Rossi
- VeeKay (R)
- Hunter-Reay
- Sato
3 p.m. – Drivers begin pit stops.
2:54 p.m. – Race is back on yellow flag after Marcus Ericsson crashes, and his car is on fire. He appeared to be able to get out of the car on the track.
2:50 p.m. – Lap 20 top five:
- Scott Dixon
- Ryan Hunter-Reay
- Takuma Sato
- James Hinchcliffe
- Marco Andretti
2:47 p.m. – Carpenter gets back in the race at Lap 14.
2:46 p.m. – The green flag is back out!
2:36 p.m. Ed Carpenter hit the wall, and James Davison’s car caught fire less than 10 laps into the race.
Davison appeared to get out of the car, and it was taken off the track.
Full schedule for the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500
- 1 p.m.: All Cars on Grid
- 1 p.m.: NBC Live Coverage Begins
- 1:20 p.m.: “On the Banks of the Wabash”
- 1:47 p.m.: Indianapolis 500 Driver Introductions
- 2:08 p.m.: Presentation of Colors, Military Joint Services
- 2:09 p.m.: Invocation – Archbishop Charles C. Thompson, Archdiocese of Indianapolis
- 2:10 p.m.: Rifle Volley
- 2:11 p.m.: “Taps”
- 2:12 p.m.: National Anthem – “Singing Surgeons” Dr. Elvis Francois & Dr. William Robinson
- 2:14 p.m.: First Flyover – U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
- 2:14 p.m.: “Drivers, To Your Cars.” – Dave Calabro
- 2:20 p.m.: “Back Home Again in Indiana” – Jim Cornelison
- 2:22 p.m.: Second Flyover – U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
- 2:22 p.m.: Command To Start Engines – Roger Penske, Chairman, Indianapolis Motor Speedway
- 2:30 p.m.: Green Flag, 104th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge (200 laps). Flag waved by Dan Towriss, President and CEO, Gainbridge.
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2:15 p.m. – A performance of taps at a crowd-less Indianapolis Motor Speedway is performed.
9:15 a.m. – The United States Air Force Thunderbirds will perform two flyovers at Indianapolis Motor Speedway before the Indy 500 Sunday.
“We’re going to be flying down the front stretch, right at the end of the National Anthem,” said Maj. Michael Brewer. “And then we’ll be back for maybe a little bit of a surprise a little bit later.”
Brewer said flyovers in the middle of summer typically don’t happen for the Thunderbirds because they are usually booked up for summer air shows.
“But obviously this year is a unique year and this opportunity came up, so we’re really happy to be here,” said Brewer.
Brewer said the weather looks great for the flyovers and they will be moving faster than 400 mph.
9 a.m. – Gov. Eric Holcomb said he didn’t even think about going to the track to watch the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500.
“I’m going to do exactly what every other Hoosier is doing, hopefully watching it on TV, catching every second of the race and hopefully with family and friends,” Holcomb said.
Holcomb said state government was part of the process when it came to some aspects of the decisions made for the race during the pandemic, but IMS made the ultimate decision to hold the race without fans.
“They were digesting and crunching the numbers that we were seeing on the daily, quite honestly the hourly basis leading up to ‘D day’ or decision day,” he said. “I think ultimately they made the right decision. Better safe than sorry.”
Holcomb said Hoosiers will get through this year and the next race will be better than ever.
8:30 a.m. – IMS President Doug Boles said he plans to greet some Indy 500 fans who are sitting outside the track on Sunday as they celebrate the big race. The decision for the race to run without spectators was a difficult one. He said they still thought they would be able to have fans in June when they made the decision to not have fans at the Brickyard.
“As we got closer and closer and we saw the metrics moving, we started to realize it was going to be harder to have fans,” said Boles. “We started thinking about what does it mean to these drivers, these teams? Frankly, what’s it mean to our community when we have this opportunity to be on an international stage? And when we really looked at it we thought there’s just too many negatives to not have it. So that’s why we’re here today.”
Boles said, despite the hard changes, he’s excited for the race.
“I think the country needs something to get excited about, and I hope they get excited about today,” said Boles.
6:00 a.m. – Fans were flocking to the outside of the track as early as 6 a.m. Sunday in preparation for the big race, which is slated to start at 2:30 p.m.
“Well it’s definitely different,” said one race fan. “I got the goosebumps. Last night we were talking, and on the way down it didn’t feel like race day, all the way, I watched Carb Day on the DVR. But when we pulled up we were going to camp out right across the street, but then when we got on the grounds all of a sudden we saw the museum, the big screen, it feels like a drive-in movie right here. The sounds and the smells. And it feels like race day a little bit.”
Loyal race fans will keep streaks intact
Loyal race fans have been counting their Indy 500 streaks for years and those streaks may seem like they are in jeopardy. But, IMS President Doug Boles issued a special proclamation to make sure those streaks stay intact.
Boles says that fans who watch or listen to the 104th running of the Indy 500 and return for next year’s race will officially keep their streak.
“You guys know and you’ve heard it from us, it’s the most important element of the Indianapolis 500 and I know many of you are struggling with the fact the race is going to be done without fans, so as a team all of us here at IMS want to do something to show how important your streaks are and how we want you to continue those streaks,” said Boles.
Ticket holder streaks range from two to 68 years in length. More than 36,000 tickets are sold annually to customers that have attended the race for 35 consecutive years or more.
Beloved Indy 500 milk tradition will survive scaled-back plans
The speedway says milk will be waiting for the winner this year, with some changes. The beloved tradition will survive the scaled-back plans forced in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.
New milk bottles had to be made for the new race date. Typically there is a veteran milk person and a rookie milk person who are responsible for getting that perfectly chilled milk to the winner, the owner and the crew chief.
This year in effort to keep fewer people in the winner circle, the veteran will be doing all of the milk responsibilities.
“I am still just as excited, this tradition is so important to the Indy 500 and to carry on something that has been going on for so long,” said Jill Houin, veteran milk person. “It is sad that we can’t have fans cheering us on in the winner circle, but I know they are cheering us on at home.”
Drivers get to pick the type of milk they get to drink if they win. This year, 24 drivers chose whole milk; eight drivers picked 2% milk; and one driver went with fat-free milk.