Here is a rundown of what got me thinking...
Álex Palou continues thrashing the IndyCar competition, and Palou won by over 16 seconds at Barber Motorsports Park. It is a "he said, he said" over what the rules could have been for the NASCAR All-Star Race. Formula One sprinted around Miami. Max Verstappen sprinted around the world as he became a father for the first time. Monaco already hosted its first round of the month. There were some questionable moves in Denver. It is May. A certain segment of the population cannot stop mentioning that. Indianapolis Motor Speedway is about to get busy. That is where our attention turns.
Should the Indianapolis 500 Start Later?
This has actually been on my mind for nearly a year, but there is only so much time for review and recap after an Indianapolis 500. It is a race that takes your attention for the better part of the month. You could pick apart every decision and what could be different (Side bar: If the pace car is going to be a Corvette every year, can we have something more dynamic than just a white car? How about an art car design? How about someone with a tad bit of creative comes up with a livery. Come on, man!).
With this being the start to the month of May, it feels natural to return to the topic.
After last year's rain-delayed race, on the Off Track with Hinch and Rossi podcast, Alexander Rossi noted that despite the delay, the crowd remained in the grandstand and television viewership did not suffer. Rossi suggested a later start time, a mid-afternoon start time, would be better for the race, especially when it came to television viewership.
The scheduled green flag time of 12:45 p.m. ET is pretty precarious for half the country. Most of the nation is still in the morning. That is 9:45 a.m. Pacific. Some people are just waking up. Others are out at church or on their way to church. The Indianapolis 500 is not at the top of their minds at that time. By the time they might realize the race is taking place, it could be over. There is a fraction of the audience that is only catching the end. There is also a fraction of the audience that is only ever going to watch the end, so it might work out for some.
But Rossi has a point. If IndyCar and its broadcast partner is trying to maximize viewership, if it is trying to expose its competition and its biggest race to the greatest number of people, shouldn't it be at the most advantageous time for the viewing public?
As we slip deeper into the 21st century and have now completed a quarter of it, we have more information on viewer habits and when is the best time to get the most number of people watching. Television drives all start times. They want to sell advertisements for the highest price possible. We have seen a shift from the early afternoon start time in all sports.
Outside of wild card weekend, all NFL playoff games start at 3:30 p.m. ET or later. NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final games are all in primetime. There hasn't been a day World Series game since 1987. Heck, the final pairings for a golf tournament do not go out until the middle of the afternoon. Even the most basic events start later. NASCAR has virtually all of its races starting no earlier than 3:00 p.m. Even IndyCar schedules its races later, though IndyCar will take an earlier window if it means avoiding competition.
There is a limitation in a 12:45 p.m. start for the Indianapolis 500. Not only is it early for most of the country, it is also competing with the general holiday festivities. The last thing many people want to do on a holiday weekend is spend Sunday afternoon inside watching television. People want to get out. Some people have already traveled. If they are on vacation, the last thing they will want to do is spend a day in front of the television, Indianapolis 500 be damned. The nature of Memorial Day weekend means the Indianapolis 500 will always be out of reach for some people.
There is a way for the "500" to be brought within reach though. As much as people love being out, at some point they will want to be in. At some point, they will want to relax and call it a day. Some will look for a break from the sun, and some will head in for dinner. What better time to turn on the television than around 6:00 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. It is a wonderful time to slip into a chair and see what is on the tube.
Last year, a group of people who likewise would have never knew the Indianapolis 500 was happening possibly got to see the finish of the race for the first time. They are unlikely to change their behavior to be available for an earlier race this year, but a later race could fit into their schedules.
Last year's race ended at 7:45 p.m. ET, and though the inconvenient circumstances setup such a lovely evening finish, it should be noted it was a tight window for the race. Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the local authorities agreed that the race would end by 8:15 p.m. ET to allow for safe egress from the circuit. Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the surrounding area is not set up for a night time crowd exit. None of the parking lots are lit. The surrounding streets are not that well lit. Last year turned out to be a little bit of a mess when the race was over. The last thing the Indianapolis 500 should want is a race against sunset.
Of course, this is where the "put up lights" crowd comes out of the woodwork. Easy folks.
As much as I enjoyed the dusk finish and as much as Alexander Rossi has a valid point, I don't think the Indianapolis 500 start time should change.
I was thinking about this at last year's race. Think about how long people wait for this race. This is a yearly event. For most it is the only race they will view all year let alone attend. The last thing you want is to make them wait a little bit longer. For a race of this magnitude, when it comes to race day, it should happen early.
Why make them wait? We know the race can start at 12:45 p.m. The race is around three hours, let's just do it! People don't need and probably do not want an extra three hours to tailgate. The day is full enough as it is with people showing up at 5:00 a.m. to enter the track.
As mentioned above, a later start time puts the race in a box. Last year's race worked out because the storm cleared by the middle of the afternoon. We had the late afternoon and early evening to fit in the race. The first year with a 3:45 p.m. green flag where it is clear all day and rain starts 20 laps into the race and the remaining 180 laps are postponed until Monday will be vilified because everyone will say, "We could have gotten a full race in with a normal start time."
And those people would be right! A late start only screws you, and not in a fun way. Even if the Speedway put up lights, no one wants to feel like they are taken hostage by an event. Nobody wants one race to steal their free time. No one wants a six-hour day at the race to turn into a 12-hour day at the race and keep them out deep into the night. An early start time gives you the entire day as a buffer in case the weather is not in your favor early. The moment you push the start time back, you lose that.
It must also be acknowledged the Indianapolis 500's place on that Sunday. There is another race later that night, and even if the Indianapolis 500 is the Indianapolis 500, and NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 will only be available through streaming on Prime Video, we know the best thing is not to step on each other's toes. IndyCar was a little lucky last year that it had Kyle Larson. Without Larson's Double attempt and him staying to run in Indianapolis, I don't know if the viewership stays around even if it is the Indianapolis 500.
A later start time would kill The Double. Until this year, The Double has been a once-a-decade thing, and a timely one at that. Robby Gordon in 2004, Kurt Busch in 2014 and Kyle Larson in 2024. The Double isn't attempted enough for that alone to justify keeping the earlier start time in Indianapolis, but the mystique of the accomplishment is great enough that IndyCar shouldn't throw away its one chance to be a part of something special.
The Indianapolis 500 has its place in the sporting landscape. As much as things have changed in the 114 years since the first race, there are certain things that should remain unchanged. Being an afternoon race, one that is not racing against the sunset or dinner time, can remain the Indianapolis 500's identity. The moment it starts moving around is when it loses people. The race will start in the early afternoon. If you miss it, you miss it. Everyone knows when it will start. It doesn't have to be on the edge of prime time. It might not be at its maximum potential, but it has been one thing for so long and found great success being what it is that chasing more could come at a loss, not a gain.
There are valid reasons as to why the Indianapolis 500 should start later. However, it feels like it is at the right time, and it should keep its place.
Champion From the Weekend
Haiden Deegan clinched the Supercross 250cc West championship with a victory in Denver.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Álex Palou and Deegan, but did you know...
Oscar Piastri won the Miami Grand Prix, his third consecutive victory and fourth of the season. Lando Norris won the sprint race.
Dennis Hauger won the Indy Lights race from Barber, his second consecutive victory.
Joey Logano won the NASCAR Cup race from Texas. Kyle Larson won the Grand National Series race, his second of the season. Corey Heim won the Truck race, his third victory of the season.
Oliver Rowland and Sébastien Buemi split the Monaco ePrix.
The #18 IDEC Sport Oreca of Jamie Chadwick, Daniel Juncadella and Mathys Jaubert won the 4 Hours of Le Castellet. The #17 CLX Motorsport Ligier of Adrian Closmenil. Theodor Jensen and Paul Lanchère won in LMP3, its second consecutive victory. The #50 AF Corse Ferrari of Riccardo Agostini, Custodio Toledo and Lilou Wadoux won in LMGT3.
The #51 AF Corse Ferrari of Vincent Abril and Alessio Rovera and the #48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG of Lucas Auer and Maro Engel split the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup races from Brands Hatch.
The #38 TGR Team KeePer Cerumo Toyota of Hiroaki Ishiura and Toshiki Oyu won the Super GT race from Fuji. The #6 Velorex Ferrari of Yoshiaki Katayama and Roberto Mehri won in GT300.
Nicolò Bulega swept the World Superbike races from Cremona. Stefano Manzi swept the World Supersport races.
Chase Sexton won the Supercross race from Denver, his sixth victory of the season.
Coming Up This Weekend
The 12th Grand Prix of Indianapolis.
MotoGP ventures up to Le Mans.
NASCAR ends its first third of the season in Kansas.
IMSA will be at Laguna Seca with GTP and both GT classes.
The FIA World Endurance Championship has its final round before Le Mans, its traditional May outing at Spa-Francorchamps.
Supercars heads to Symmons Plains.
Supercross closes its season in Salt Lake City.
