INDIANAPOLIS — A storm has delayed the start of the 108th Indy 500, with track drying already underway and a green flag expected before 5 p.m. ET.
As the nearly two-hour storm at Indianapolis Motor Speedway subsided, track president Doug Boles said during a press conference at 2:30 p.m. ET that he hoped the 2.5-mile stretch of pavement would Dry within two hours.
Boles said that as the track drying work proceeds, the track will begin an elaborate and traditional pre-race ceremony. IMS has leased a fleet of NASCAR's Air Titan drying systems.
The Memorial Day-themed ceremony and other famous elements of the Indy 500 pre-race, such as “Back to Indiana” and “Tap Dance,” will go ahead as planned. The Thunderbirds will also compete in a double flyby.
Heavy rain began to fall at Indianapolis Motor Speedway at 12:45 pm ET, which was the scheduled time for the green flag to be raised.
Bad weather had been expected since early this morning and the 33-car field had been in the garages all morning as the pre-race schedule for the opening ceremony was put on hold indefinitely.
In anticipation of lightning, IMS officials began clearing the stands at 11:20 a.m. ET. IMS clears the stands when lightning strikes within 8 miles of the track.
At an earlier press conference at 10:45 a.m., Boles estimated the expected crowd at 345,000, with about 125,000 at the track.
“This is a challenging day for us,” Boles said. “We have a lot of passionate fans here. No matter what decision is made, the most important thing is to consider the fans.
“Hopefully after (the storm) passes, we can start drying out the track between 2:30 and 3 p.m. and still be able to start the Indianapolis 500 and start racing today.”
Bolles later remained hopeful that the race would go the distance. Sunset will be around 9pm EST and it will take about three hours to complete the 500 miles.
NBC and Peacock begin coverage of the Indy 500 at 11 a.m. ET.
Here are the start times, complete schedule, TV and streaming information for the 108th Indy 500 on May 26 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Boles said that in addition to clearing the stands, the EDM music festival, which attracted about 30,000 people at the Snake Pit in Turn 3, was also halted. Expected to resume at 3 p.m.
Bolles said at a 6:20 a.m. press conference that the track considered moving the start time up 30 minutes, but decided at 4:45 a.m. ET to keep the original schedule.
“There was consideration of moving the start time to 12:15, but that didn't make sense,” Boles said. “The last thing we want is to move our opening hours to 12:15, have customers wait, and then ask them to leave because of the weather. Because of where (the storm) is tracking, that doesn't make sense and could put us in a worse situation.” situation.
The uncertainty surrounding the start of the race also casts a layer of uncertainty over Kyle Larson becoming the fifth driver to compete in both the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600.
Green flag for the Coke 600 is scheduled for 6:22 PM ET, which means Larson likely won't be able to start if he and Hendrick Motorsports choose to stay at Brickyard.
The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion remains committed to making his IndyCar debut, even if it means missing the start of the Coca-Cola 600.
In a pre-race interview with NBC Sports' Marty Snider, Larson reiterated that making his first Indy 500 appearance is a priority. “This is not just my decision, it's the decision of Hendrick, Rick Hendrick, Hendrick Automotive Group (sponsors), everyone at Hendrick Motorsports,” Larson said.
“I think we were all a part of this decision. Jeff Gordon, Jeff Andrews. There's been a lot of time and investment put into running the Indy 500. It's been building up for over a year. We need to run it, I want to do this too; I feel like I have a good chance of doing well and possibly winning.
“I just hope that everything goes well and we can run the full distance in both races. I don't care if it's the same day. I just hope that I can do the full distance in both races. But we'll see.
