IndyCar: One possible addition to the 2024 Indy 500 entry list

In February, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced that they would be welcoming back their 2020 Indy 500 champion for the 108th running of the race this May, confirming that two-time Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato is set to drive the No. 75 Honda as he attempts to win the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" for the third time in the last eight years.

Sato also won the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) in 2017 in his one and only Indy 500 start for Andretti Autosport.

The 47-year-old Japanese IndyCar driver became the 32nd driver on the entry list for this year's Indy 500, and his No. 75 Honda became the 34th entry. Dale Coyne Racing have since announced drivers for both of their entries, but the car count remains at 34 heading into this week's two-day open test.

Indy 500 entry list: One possible addition

With 34 cars on the entry list and just 33 allowed to compete, there will be a Bump Day for the second year in a row, the third time in four years, and the fifth time in seven years.

Should the entry list grow to 35, it would mark the first time that multiple drivers fail to qualify for the race since 2021, and it does appear like things are trending in that direction, even as only 34 cars are set to turn laps during this week's test.

Abel Motorsports have done pretty much everything but confirm that they will be back for a second year in a row with their No. 50 Chevrolet after R.C. Enerson overcame the odds to qualify for the race last year. While it was believed that Enerson would again be the driver, that is not a sure thing, according to RACER.com.

Whether it's Team Penske's failure to qualify in 1995, Ryan Hunter-Reay's failure to qualify in 2011, James Hinchcliffe's failure to qualify in 2018, Fernando Alonso and McLaren's epic defeat at the hands of Kyle Kaiser and Juncos Racing in 2019, or Graham Rahal's heartbreak last year, we all know that Indianapolis Motor Speedway does not play favorites.

The possibility of having two drivers on the outside looking in could set up another chaotic Bump Day, especially after the drama of last year when there were 34 drivers going for 33 spots. Three of the last four Bump Days have resulted in a full-time driver failing to qualify.

Indy 500 qualifying is scheduled to take place on Saturday, May 18 and Sunday, May 19. The 108th running of the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" is set to be broadcast live on NBC from Indianapolis Motor Speedway starting at 11:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 26.