2021 Indianapolis 500

Map of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval.

*CRC Wiki Note: You can watch the race via CRC's YouTube channel by using this broadcast link.*

The 108th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race, known colloquially as the **2021 Indianapolis 500**, was a 500 mile (800 kilometer) motor race held on 9 May 2021 as the premier event to the 2021 AT&T Champ Car World Series season, held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. Pre-race activities began 13 days prior to the race with Indy 500 Media Day for the event taking place on 27 April. Practice for the race began on 28 April, leading up to time trial weekend on the 1st and 2nd of May. A full week of practice followed, ending with Carburation Day on Friday, 7 May.

Sebastian Devereux retired following the events of the 2020 event, meaning there was not a defending Indianapolis 500 Champion entering the month of May. Panasonic Team Impulse and Rockstar Phantom Motors entered opening practice as the heavy favorites to battle for the race win, and the two teams led every day of practice, with Panasonic Team Impulse leading all but opening day of practice on 28 April. Hazel Lacasse, in her second Indianapolis 500, won the pole position during time trials, outqualifying her teammate, Sakura Ishibashi, who started the race on the front row with Lacasse. Despite looking strong in the lead up to time trial weekend, none of the Rockstar Phantom Motors entries made it beyond the initial session of qualifying runs, having to lock their way in on 2 May, named Bump Day as it determined positions 7-33 and those that would participate in the race.

Three former Indianapolis 500 Champions highlighted the 38 car entry list for the race. Stephanie Porter-Kelley, the 2009 race winner, entered the 2021 event knowing it would be her last attempt to win another 500, with the Bosnian-American driver retiring from driving at the end of the season. Kunimitsu Kinoshita, the 2015 and 2017 race winner, headlined a four car effort for Cat Devil Racing, and Cristine Espinoza, a five time Indianapolis 500 Champion, ran as a single car effort for Escuderia Aguila.

Panasonic Team Impulse and Alpine-Renault would dominate the race on 9 May. Hazel Lacasse started from pole and led 184 of 200 laps to claim her first Indianapolis 500 victory en route to the 2021 Double Coronation, where the Indianapolis 500 Champion also claims the Indycar World Driver's Championship in the same year. B.K. Glover, the third entry for Panasonic Team Impulse, led for an additional 15 laps, after Sakura Ishibashi suffered an engine failure on lap 42. Kaylee Zappa, driving for Swift Knight Autosport, led 1 lap, the only non Team Impulse driver to lead during the race. Alpine-Renault, as an engine supplier, led all 200 laps of the race, a first time ever occurrence. Mexican rookie, Maria Chavez, was the only other driver to finish on the lead lap, finishing fourth for newcoming team, Velocity Autosport. The 2021 event was the fastest 500 mile race ever completed, with Lacasse finishing with a total time just under 2 hours, 23 minutes.

## Race Background

### Rule Changes

* Practice days were changed to begin at 10:00 a.m. local time, regardless of ambient or track temperature. Prior to 2021, the track would only open for practice once either track temperature or ambiant temperature reached 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
* Time Trial Weekend returned to a 2 day format for 2021 due to the amount of entries registered for the race. Saturday, 1 May would be dedicated to initial runs and Firestone Fast 6 runs, while Sunday, 2 May would be dedicated to determining the starting positions 7-33 and those that would not qualify at all for the event.
* Each entry received 40 sets of Firestone Firehawk tires to use during the month, with each entry required to save 7 sets of tires for the race itself. Prior to 2021, there was not a race day requirement, meaning teams could run out of fresh sets of tires during the race.

### Event Alterations

* Carburation Day, 7 May, would be split between Indy 500 practice, Pit Stop Challenge, and the Nissan Atlantic Championship's feature race for the weekend.
* The Germain-Espinoza Trophy will not be removed from the Pagoda during the month of May except for on Race Day itself, where it will be moved to the Winner's Podium. In prior years, the large trophy would be toured around various parts of the greater Indianapolis area during practice days, but concerns of vandalism prompted a change.

### 2021 Champ Car season

*Main Article: 2021 AT&T Champ Car World Series season*

The 108th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race was the sixth race of the 2021 Champ Car season. Four different drivers had won the first five races leading up to the Indy 500. Esther Hoffson won her first Champ Car race at Phillip Island to start the season. Hazel Lacasse won two races, the second race of the season at Motegi and the race right before the Indy 500 at Chicagoland. Siri Lundqvist won the third race of the season at Richmond, and Andrew Draco won the fourth race of the season at Texas. Hazel Lacasse entered the Indianapolis 500 with a 14 point lead in the Indycar World Championship standings over Red Bull Highlight Racing driver Simona Leroux.

## Entry List

The entry list for the 2021 Indianapolis 500 was finalized on 1 April 2021 by Horizon Corporation. 38 entries from 16 teams were registered to attempt to qualify for the race. The entry list featured only three former Indianapolis 500 Champions for the second straight year. The entry list also featured 12 Indianapolis 500 rookies and five former pole sitters. All 38 entries used the IR-20 chassis produced by Andromeda Automotive Initiative (AAI). Four engine suppliers; Alpine-Renault, Chevrolet, Honda, and Mercedes-Benz, supplied a portion of the 38 total entries.

**(R)** denotes Indianapolis 500 Rookie, **(P)** denotes former Indianapolis 500 pole sitter, and **(W)** denotes former Indianapolis 500 Champion.

## Testing and Rookie Orientation

New to the 2021 event, there was no standalone test day for the Champ Car teams to adjust to the tire specifications Firestone had selected for the event. Additionally, Indy 500 rookies were required to complete their Rookie Orientation Program during Media Day. No incidents occurred during the ROP session, and all drivers were cleared to take part in the rest of the event.

## Starting Grid

### Alterations from Time Trials

* Car 81 was moved to the rear of the field for a driver change after qualifying. Evangeline Porter qualified the car in place of Nicole Liechti, who was not cleared from injury until after qualifying weekend had concluded.

## Box Score

### Race Statistics

* Cautions: 3 for 12 laps total
* Lead Changes: 18 between 3 drivers
* Weather: Variable, winds West-Northwest 6-11 mph

## Post Race Effects

* On Monday, 10 May, Rockstar Phantom Motors announced it was being bought out by Velocity Autosport, due to team owner Jean-Claude Gabriel's prolonged battle with stage 4 cancer. Gabriel would pass away from that battle with cancer on 10 November 2021, with the sale being finalized on 31 December 2021.
* Black Rose Racing announced on Tuesday, 11 May, that it was terminating its contract with Brad Nerri following his failure to qualify for the race. Alan Herrera would be called in to fill the seat for the remainder of the season, winning the following weekend at Belle Isle.
* Hazel Lacasse would go on to win the 2021 Indycar World Championship, becoming the first person to achieve a "double coronation" of winning the Indianapolis 500 and the series championship since Cristine Espinoza in 2014.

## See Also

* 2021 AT&T Champ Car World Series season, the 23rd season of Indycar World Championship competition.
* 2020 Indianapolis 500, the previous year's Indianapolis 500 mile race.
* 2022 Indianapolis 500, the next year's Indianapolis 500 mile race.