Indy 500: Way-too-early favorite revealed as calendar flips to 2025

As we continue to keep an eye out for IndyCar championship odds ahead of the 2025 season, which is scheduled to get underway exactly two months from today on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, DraftKings Sportsbook has gone ahead and published the way-too-early odds for the 109th running of the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway, Indiana oval is scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 25, and Team Penske's Josef Newgarden is set to enter as the first two-time reigning winner since Helio Castroneves entered his third Indy 500 undefeated back in 2003.

No driver has ever won the Indy 500 in three straight years, but Newgarden is predicted to be the first.

Oddsmakers apparently learned their lesson after last year, as Newgarden was not only not the favorite heading into the April open test; he was jumped by rookie Kyle Larson immediately after that test, despite the fact that he posted a faster speed than Larson (and everybody else who participated).

Given the level of competitiveness in the NTT IndyCar Series, "favorites" are by no means overwhelming favorites. There is no prohibitive favorite, per se, to win this year's running of the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing".

But the driver of the No. 2 Chevrolet is indeed listed as the odds-on favorite to win this race as the calendar shifts to 2025 and the focus shifts toward the 2025 season. He is listed just ahead of Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward, whom he passed for the lead and ultimately the win on the final lap of the 2024 race.

Here are the way-too-early top 10 favorites for this year's Indy 500.

Josef Newgarden, Team Penske: +600
Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren: +700
Kyle Larson, McLaren-Hendrick: +800
Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing: +1000
Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske: +1000
Will Power, Team Penske: +1200
Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing: +1200
Alexander Rossi, Ed Carpenter Racing: +1200
Colton Herta, Andretti Global: +1400
Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Enterprises: +1600

Full odds can be found here.

It is surprising to see Scott McLaughlin and Alex Palou listed as far down the order as they are, even though they are still listed among the favorites. McLaughlin took pole for the race and led the most laps last year, and he went on to win two oval races, the first two oval wins of his IndyCar career, en route to an oval championship he secured even before the season finale.

Palou, who is still seeking that elusive first oval win, also managed to work his way into the fight for the win late, even after his worst ever Indy 500 qualifying effort. The three-time and two-time reigning series champion appeared to have the car to win in both 2022 and 2023 as well before issues in the pits set up two rallies from 30th place to ninth and fourth, respectively.

Fox is set to provide live coverage of the 109th running of the Indy 500 from the "Racing Capital of the World" beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 25.