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Indy 500: No bumping, but 33-car tradition remains

By Asher Fair

J.R. Hildebrand, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, and Ryan Hunter-Reay, Andretti Autosport, IndyCar, Indy 500 (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
J.R. Hildebrand, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, and Ryan Hunter-Reay, Andretti Autosport, IndyCar, Indy 500 (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) /
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A total of 33 cars are slated to compete in the 104th running of the Indy 500 on Sunday, August 23, so there will be no bumping.

There will be no bumping in qualifications for the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500 this coming weekend after two consecutive years left multiple IndyCar drivers on the outside looking in, but the 33-car tradition is slated to remain intact.

Assuming that all of the entries which have been confirmed for this year’s running of the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana end up making qualifying attempts, the field of 33 is slated to live on.

This news comes following confirmations that Dale Coyne Racing are set to enter the race with James Davison via a partnership involving Rick Ware Racing, BYRD and Belardi Auto Racing and that DragonSpeed are slated to enter the race with Ben Hanley, but that Top Gun Racing will not be entering the race with RC Enerson.

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The limit for the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” was set at 33 back in 1934, and only twice since then has the race featured more than 33 cars, with 35 cars in the 1979 and 1997 races due to extenuating circumstances. The most recent Indy 500 that did not feature 33 cars took place in 1947, when 30 cars competed.

While the official entry list has not yet been released, here is a list of those 33 drivers, grouped first by full-time/part-time/one-off status and then by team. Drivers within each team are listed by car number.

Full-time drivers

A.J. Foyt Enterprises

  • Charlie Kimball, #4 Chevrolet

Andretti Autosport

  • Zach Veach, #26 Honda
  • Alexander Rossi, #27 Honda
  • Ryan Hunter-Reay, #28 Honda
  • Colton Herta, #88 Honda (Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport)
  • Marco Andretti, #98 Honda (Andretti Herta Autosport with Marco Andretti and Curb-Agajanian)

Arrow McLaren SP

  • Pato O’Ward, #5 Chevrolet
  • Oliver Askew, #7 Chevrolet

Chip Ganassi Racing

  • Marcus Ericsson, #8 Honda
  • Scott Dixon, #9 Honda
  • Felix Rosenqvist, #10 Honda

Dale Coyne Racing

  • Santino Ferrucci, #18 Honda (with Vasser-Sullivan)
  • Alex Palou, #55 Honda (with Team Goh)

Ed Carpenter Racing

  • Rinus VeeKay, #21 Chevrolet

Meyer Shank Racing

  • Jack Harvey, #60 Honda

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

  • Graham Rahal, #15 Honda
  • Takuma Sato, #30 Honda

Team Penske

  • Josef Newgarden, #1 Chevrolet
  • Will Power, #12 Chevrolet
  • Simon Pagenaud, #22 Chevrolet

Other:

  • Conor Daly (runs the road and street courses for Ed Carpenter Racing and the non-Indy 500 oval races for Carlin)
    • #47 Chevrolet – Ed Carpenter Racing (Indy 500, third car)

Part-time drivers

A.J. Foyt Enterprises

  • Tony Kanaan, #14 Chevrolet
  • Dalton Kellett, #41 Chevrolet

Andretti Autosport

  • James Hinchcliffe, #29 Honda

Carlin

  • Max Chilton, #59 Chevrolet

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

  • Sage Karam, #24 Chevrolet

Ed Carpenter Racing

  • Ed Carpenter, #20 Chevrolet

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

  • Spencer Pigot, #45 Honda (with Citrone/Buhl Autosport)

Indy 500 one-offs

Arrow McLaren SP

  • Fernando Alonso, #66 Chevrolet

Dale Coyne Racing

  • James Davison, #51 Honda (with Rick Ware Racing, BYRD and Belardi Auto Racing)

DragonSpeed

  • Ben Hanley, #81 Chevrolet

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

  • J.R. Hildebrand, #67 Chevrolet

Team Penske

  • Helio Castroneves, #3 Chevrolet

Next. Top 10 Indianapolis 500 drivers of all-time. dark

The 104th running of the Indy 500 is set to be broadcast live on NBC from Indianapolis Motor Speedway beginning at 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 23.