Pre-qualifying practice week for the 110th running of the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is set to get underway this afternoon.
Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou enters the month of May as the reigning winner of the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing", after Team Penske's Josef Newgarden won the race in back-to-back years.
Now the driver of the No. 10 Honda is aiming to become just the seventh driver to win the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway, Indiana oval in consecutive years, and he is listed by DraftKings Sportsbook as the favorite.
Palou, who is listed at +450, was considered long overdue when he won it nearly 12 months ago. He finished runner-up behind four-time winner Helio Castroneves in 2021, rallied from 30th due to pit issues due to ninth and fourth in 2022 and 2023, respectively, and finished fifth in 2024.
Who are the biggest threats to the four-time and three-time reigning NTT IndyCar Series champion this month?
Here are the top five as practice gets underway.
1. Josef Newgarden, Team Penske
Odds: +550
While Josef Newgarden probably wouldn't have won the race in 2025, he was on for at least a top five finish if not for a late fuel pump issue, despite having to start all the way back in 32nd due to Team Penske's attenuator troubles. Newgarden nearly went all of 2025 without a win, but now he's suddenly on a two-race oval win streak.
2. Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren
Odds: +650
No driver needs to get the monkey off of his back more so than Pato O'Ward. He is the sport's most popular driver, he has been in contention to win the race five years in a row, and he is now the winningest active full-time driver without an Indy 500 win. The pressure that comes with the "is this his year?" question being repeated, year after year, is starting to mount.
3. David Malukas, Team Penske
Odds: +800
David Malukas wasted no time proving to the world that he's the real deal, taking the pole and finishing on the podium in his first oval start with Team Penske at Phoenix Raceway. But he was the real deal long before that, highlighted by his runner-up finish in the 2025 Indy 500 with A.J. Foyt Enterprises, despite having missed the race due to injury in 2024.
T-4. Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske
Odds: +1000
No driver is in more need of redemption than Scott McLaughlin, who didn't even make it to the green flag in 2025 just one year after leading the field to the green flag from pole. His best finish in five Indy 500 starts is sixth, making Indianapolis the only oval he's ever competed at more than once without at least one top three finish in his first two starts.
T-4. Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global
Odds: +1000
Kyle Kirkwood has quietly hung around the lead pack in each of his three Indy 500 starts with Andretti Global, and Andretti Global seem to have taken a step forward as a whole this season. He finished second in the season's first oval race at Phoenix Raceway, and he hasn't finished any race lower than ninth all year.
Others to watch
Ed Carpenter Racing's Christian Rasmussen (+1200), Andretti Global's Marcus Ericsson (+1400), Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon (+1500), Andretti Global's Will Power (+1600), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's Conor Daly (+1600), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing's Takuma Sato (+1800), Arrow McLaren's Christian Lundgaard (+1800), A.J. Foyt Enterprises' Santino Ferrucci (+2000), Ed Carpenter Racing's Alexander Rossi (+2000)
Full odds can be found here and are always subject to change.
All Indy 500 practice sessions are set to be shown live on Fox Sports 1 or Fox Sports 2. Qualifying this coming weekend is set to air live on Fox and Fox Sports 1. The race itself is set to be shown live on Fox beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 24. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and catch all of the action from the "Racing Capital of the World"!
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