2024 Indy 500: What to Know and How to Watch

“The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” is back for its 108th running on May 26: get ready to feel the adrenaline rush of revving engines and the 200+ mile-per-hour top speeds of the 2024 Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway!

You won’t want to miss a moment of this iconic race, and for NASCAR fans, there’s an added bonus: the Cup Series’ very own Kyle Larson will attempt to race in both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 later in the day.

When is the Indianapolis 500?

The 2024 Indy 500 will be held on May 26, 2024, with the green flag waving at 12:45 p.m. ET. The race usually takes between two and three hours to complete.

How Many Laps is the Indy 500?

The race is 200 laps long. It’s easy to make the mistake of thinking that the race is 500 laps long due to its name, but that actually refers to the total number of miles that the racers will travel over the course of the event on the 2.5-mile-long course.

How to Watch the Indy 500 on TV

You can watch the Indy 500 on NBC (Check your local listings here), on Universo (DIRECTV Channel 410) or live on Peacock.

Viewers in the Indianapolis region will unfortunately be subject to the race’s infamous blackout policy, which has been in effect for every race ever held with the exception of 1949, 1950, 2020 and 2021. That’s to encourage locals to attend the race in person.

History of the Indy 500

The Indianapolis 500, more commonly referred to as the Indy 500, is an annual and iconic 500-mile race that takes place in Speedway, Indiana. The race is over 100 years old and is the source of the sport’s name, Indy car racing. It’s always held on Memorial Day weekend, one of the busiest weekends of the year for racing.

The Indy 500 is the first race of the Triple Crown of Motorsport in Indy Car racing, alongside the Monaco Grand Prix (held on the same day) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. Only one driver has ever completed the entire Triple Crown: Graham Hill.

The race takes place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a massive, 2.5-mile oval superspeedway with 9.2 degrees of banking in the turns. The track is nicknamed the “Brickyard” in honor of it having been paved with brick in 1909, and a strip of bricks remains at the start/finish line to this day.

It’s the third oldest racing permanent racetrack in the world. It’s also the highest-capacity sports venue on Earth, capable of seating over 257,000 people.

How Much Money Does the Indy 500 Winner Get?

The race’s purse has been between $3.1 and $3.6 million the last few years. The largest ever purse was $14.4 million in 2008. The winner is also presented with a glass bottle of milk, a famous race day tradition.

Who Will Race in the Indy 500?

So, who’s who in the starting grid for this year’s Indy 500? Last year’s defending winner, Josef Newgarden, will start in the front row at third position this year, while Scott McLaughlin and Will Power will take pole and second position. Rounding out the top five are Alexander Rossi in fourth place and NASCAR star Kyle Larson in fifth.

Other notable drivers include Helio Castroneves, who has the most wins among active drivers at four and will start in 20th place, and high favorites to win it all Pato O’Ward and Alex Palou, who are in eighth and 14th position, respectively.

Let’s take a look at the full field:

Will Kyle Larson Be Able to Race in the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in the Same Day?

Sunday will be a race of a day in at least three ways for Kyle Larson, one of NASCAR’s brightest stars.

Larson will attempt a feat only four other NASCAR drivers have attempted before him: he’ll start his day in Indianapolis, where he’ll race from the fifth position on the Indy 500, then attempt to jump on a private jet and fly to Charlotte, NC, where he’ll hop in his stock car and continue racing in the Coca-Cola 600. That’s a total of 1,100 miles of racing in one day, and we’re not even including the flight path!

Watch the Indy 500 on DIRECTV

Racing fans: Don’t miss a moment of the Indianapolis 500’s full-throttle action. Sign up for DIRECTV today and catch every rubber-burning, engine-roaring second of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”