Here is a rundown of what got me thinking.
The pope is American. Álex Palou has won four of the first five IndyCar races. The weather produced a chaotic MotoGP round from Le Mans. Ferrari continues to have a successful run in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Alpine has cleaned house, and the new boss is same as the old boss. There might be more to that story. Liam McNeilly had his five-race winning streak snapped in U.S. F2000 as visa issues kept the Briton from re-entering the country for the Indianapolis round. We are through one busy weekend from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Two more are ahead of us, and it could be a historic year at the Speedway.
Third or Fifth or Does it Matter?
Every year there is a chance at Indianapolis 500 history. Someone is always on the verge of doing something unprecedented at 16th & Georgetown. This year is extraordinary.
Josef Newgarden has won the last two Indianapolis 500s. Newgarden's victory last year made him the first driver with consecutive Indianapolis 500 victories in 22 years. For the first time since 2003, and for only the sixth time in the history of the race, someone has a chance at a third consecutive victory. A three-consecutive Indianapolis 500 winner has been one of those accomplishments pondered for years. It is an unexplored frontier for such a historic race. A chance to reach it does not come around often.
But we have been staring into the unknown for the last few years at Indianapolis, this year gives us a second possibility of greatest.
While Newgarden looks for a third consecutive, Hélio Castroneves is making his fourth attempt at a fifth Indianapolis 500 victory, the top of the mountain. A fifth Indianapolis 500 victory is nirvana. It does not get better than that. Castroneves could separate himself for the long-establish trio of A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears, and Castroneves will set the bar at a previously unthinkable level. A fifth Indianapolis 500 almost seemed unreachable, but it is within Castroneves' grasp.
Third consecutive Indianapolis 500 victory. Fifth overall Indianapolis 500 victory. Both are at play in the same Indianapolis 500. We have never seen both on the table simultaneously.
A fifth Indianapolis 500 victory has only been a possibility since 1978. At that time, we were seven years removed from the most recent driver to win the race in consecutive years when Al Unser did it in 1970 and 1971. When Hélio Castroneves won the Indianapolis 500 in 2001 and 2002, the only other active driver with multiple Indianapolis 500 victories was Al Unser, Jr. with two. No other driver had three let alone four looking at five.
These two achievements are aligning in a way only the planets in the sky have previously. To possibly see one is wonderful gift. To have the chance to see either in the same race is staggering. Both have long been sought achievements, and here we are.
Do either matter though?
In my youth, Castroneves had a realistic chance at a third consecutive Indianapolis 500 victory in 2003. He was second to Team Penske teammate Gil de Ferran. It was close. We nearly saw it. History fell a spot short. It was agonizingly close. Then Castroneves won a third in 2009. A fourth Indianapolis 500 victory was conceivable. A fourth made a fifth seem obtainable. It took longer than we thought for Castroneves to win his fourth, but the drive for five was revived three decades after its last pursuit.
A third consecutive Indianapolis 500 victory and a fifth Indianapolis 500 victory felt like earth-shattering accomplishments, not just in motorsports but in the world of sports. It felt like those were significant achievements that would draw the awe of many.
I have grown older. I don't think the outside world would be impressed if either occurred.
I saw Castroneves win his fourth. It was big to us. We were floored we got to see it especially in Castroneves' first Indianapolis 500 start not with Team Penske, and for it to come with Meyer Shank Racing, a relatively small team based out of Ohio. Castroneves' fourth coming in 2021 after virtually every race in 2020 was held behind closed doors and with around 135,000 people in attendance that day was another beautiful occurrence. We had lost so much, and normal was slowly returning. It was a jubilant celebration we needed after so much time apart.
Did it make any waves outside the bubble?
The true reach of a sporting event is how many people who otherwise would not tune in make it an appointment to watch. We have seen it with Triple Crown races, Caitlin Clark's final games with Iowa in the NCAA tournament, over nine million people watching Canada and the United States play ice hockey in a competition that didn't exist prior to this year, and most recently in April at The Masters with Rory McIlroy completing the career grand slam in golf. People love to see greatness hit its highest level. It doesn't matter what the sport is especially when it is exhilarating.
Castroneves' fourth didn't quite reach those levels though he hit a mark that had not been reached in 30 years. The world didn't stop to honor the man. I don't think a fifth will be any different. The same goes for Newgarden winning a third consecutive.
For as celebrated as the Indianapolis 500 is and for the attention is still able to draw, less than two weeks from race day the rumble for either possible triumphant is unnoticeable. Of course, let's see what happens over the next week. If neither Newgarden nor Castroneves show great pace through practice and qualifying and both start on row ten, no one is going to believe either is possible and waste their energy. If both end up qualifying on the front row or within the first three rows, then they will have our attention. "OUR" being the key word.
It isn't about us. We are already here. The Indianapolis 500 is the one IndyCar race that reaches beyond those regularly at the table, but we know it could draw more. It never hurts to have more. Are any casual viewers enchanted at the possibility of history?
For all the great racing that the Indianapolis 500 produced over the years, the one thing the Indianapolis 500 stands on more than anything else is history. Nostalgia intoxicates the fanbase to a dangerous levels at times. The race is over a century old and many still wish it would not enter the 21st century. We know people love the chance to see history. The Belmont Stakes draws its biggest crowds when a Triple Crown is at stake. When a Triple Crown isn't on the line, a little more than half that shows up.
The Indianapolis 500 doesn't have the temperamental attendance issue, but success comes in terms of viewership of from those at home. It comes in the storylines and the conversation of the week leading up to the race. Who is paying attention and who is speaking about the race? General buzz in the sports landscape is something the Indianapolis 500 hasn't seen since the days of Danica Patrick. It is hard to get but not impossible.
For as much as we celebrated the Indianapolis 500 as this quintessential American sporting event, it is an event America does seem to miss most times than not. It hasn't mattered how many passes there are or how close the photo finish is or if someone has a chance to win a third consecutive year or set the sole record for most victory in the race's history. If the race captures the country that would be news to the United States.
Maybe when a bit of history happens I will be pleasantly surprised. Until then, it will matter in our circle, but let's not mistake it as something the average person recognizes has occurred.
Champion From the Weekend
Cooper Webb clinched the Supercross championship with a fourth-place finish in Salt Lake City.
Tom Vialle clinched the 250cc East championship after finishing third in Salt Lake City.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Álex Palou, but did you know...
Johan Zarco won MotoGP's French Grand Prix, his first victory since the 2023 Australian Grand Prix. Marc Márquez won the sprint race. Manuel González won the Moto2 race, his second consecutive victory and third of the season. José Antonio Rueda won the Moto3 race, his second consecutive victory and fourth of the season. Óscar Gutiérrez and Mattia Casadei split the MotoE races.
The #51 Ferrari of James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi and Alessandro Pier Guidi won the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The #21 AF Corse Ferrari of François Heriau, Simon Mann and Alesio Rovera won in LMGT3.
The #6 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche of Matt Campbell and Mathieu Jaminet won the IMSA race from Laguna Seca. The #77 AO Racing Porsche of Laurin Heinrich and Klaus Bachler won in GTD Pro, its second consecutive victory. The #57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG of Philip Ellis and Russell Ward won in GTD, its second victory of the season.
Kyle Larson won the NASCAR Cup race from Kansas, his third victory of the season. Carson Hocevar won the Truck race.
Lochie Hughes and Dennis Hauger split the Indy Lights races from Indianapolis. Ariel Elkin (race one and race three) and Jacob Douglas (race two) split the USF Pro 2000 races. Jack Jeffers and Thomas Schrage split the U.S. F2000 races.
Broc Feeney (race one and two) and Matthew Payne (race three) split the Supercars races from Symmons Plains.
Chase Sexton won the Supercross race from Salt Lake City, his seventh victory of the season. Haiden Deegan won the 250cc race.
Coming Up This Weekend
Indianapolis 500 qualifying.
Formula One has its first European round of the season from Imola.
Formula E takes a trip to Tokyo.
It is NASCAR All-Star Weekend from North Wilkesboro.
Super Formula is at Autopolis.
World Superbike is off to Most.
GT World Challenge America makes its way to Sebring.
The World Rally Championship is in Portugal.
