2009 Indianapolis 500

The 93rd Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday May 24, 2009. It was the 14th Indy 500 sanctioned by the Indy Racing League, and the premier event of the 2009 IndyCar Series season.

93rd Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning bodyIndy Racing League
Season2009 IndyCar season
DateMay 24, 2009
Winner Hélio Castroneves
Winning teamPenske Racing
Average speed150.318 mph
Pole position Hélio Castroneves
Pole speed224.864 mph (362 km/h)
Fastest qualifier Hélio Castroneves
Rookie of the Year Alex Tagliani
Most laps led Scott Dixon
Pre-race ceremonies
National anthemIndiana National Guard
"Back Home Again in Indiana"Jim Nabors[1]
Starting commandMari Hulman George[1]
Pace carChevrolet Camaro[2]
Pace car driverJosh Duhamel[3]
StarterBryan Howard
Honorary starterAllen Sirkin, COO of Phillips-Van Heusen[4]
Estimated attendance250,000+[5]
TV in the United States
NetworkABC
AnnouncersMarty Reid
Scott Goodyear
Eddie Cheever, Jr.
Nielsen ratings4.0 / 11
Chronology
Previous Next
2008 2010

Hélio Castroneves, a native of Brazil, won the race from the pole position, his third Indy 500 victory. He became the first foreign-born three-time winner of the race, and tied a record by winning the race three times in the same decade (2001, 2002, 2009). The win was car owner Roger Penske's 15th Indy 500 triumph, extending his team's own record. Former winner Dan Wheldon of England came second, with Danica Patrick third, the best finish ever by a female driver. There were eight crashes, with Vítor Meira and Tony Kanaan both suffering non-permanent injuries.

The 2009 Indianapolis 500 began a three-year Centennial Era celebration which marks the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 2011 marked the 100th anniversary of the first Indy 500.

The victory by Castroneves marked the milestone 60th Indianapolis 500 victory for Firestone. It came less than two months after Castroneves was acquitted of federal charges of tax evasion and conspiracy. The IRS filed the charges against Castroneves in the fall of 2008, and the trial was held in March 2009 at the U.S. District Court in Miami. A guilty verdict in the trial would have likely sent Castroneves to prison, and ended his driving career.

Schedule
Race schedule — May 2009
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
          1
 		 2
Mini-Marathon
3
 		 4
 		 5
ROP		 6
ROP		 7
Practice		 8
Practice		 9
Pole Day
10
Time Trials		 11
 		 12
 		 13
 		 14
Practice		 15
Practice		 16
Time Trials
17
Bump Day		 18
 		 19
 		 20
Comm. Day		 21
 		 22
Carb Day		 23
Parade
24
Indy 500		 25
Memorial Day		 26
 		 27
 		 28
 		 29
 		 30
 
31
 		            
Color Notes
Green Practice
Dark Blue Time trials
Silver Race day
Red Rained out*
Blank No track activity

* Includes days where track activity
was significantly limited due to rain

ROP — denotes Rookie Orientation Program

Comm. Day — denotes 500 Festival Community Day

Other selected events

Entry list

See Team and Driver Chart for more information

The official entry list was released April 20.[6] The initial list includes 77 cars for 40 entries. 32 driver–car combinations have already been announced, as of Monday, May 4. Among the participants include five former winners (Lazier, Castroneves, Wheldon, Franchitti, Dixon), and six rookies.[7]

Paul Tracy, the runner-up of the controversial 2002 race, returned for the first time since that race,[7][8] and Scott Sharp also returns.[7]

Race and event news

Practice – Week 1

Tuesday May 5 – Rookie Orientation
May 5, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 15 Paul Tracy KV Racing 223.089 mph (359 km/h)
2 16 Scott Sharp Panther Racing 221.878 mph (357 km/h)
3 06 Robert Doornbos Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing 221.735 mph (357 km/h)
4 2 Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon Racing 218.613 mph (352 km/h)
5 34 Alex Tagliani Conquest Racing 218.333 mph (351 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Wednesday May 6 – Rookie Orientation & IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Rain, 62 °F (17 °C)
  • Practice summary: The second session of rookie orientation began at 9 a.m. Three cars took to the track for 45 minutes before rain interrupted the session. Nelson Philippe completed the final phase of his rookie test.[19] All veteran practice was washed out for the day.
May 6, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 00 Nelson Philippe HVM Racing 217.688 mph (350 km/h)
2 99 Alex Lloyd Sam Schmidt Motorsports 214.514 mph (345 km/h)
3 98 Stanton Barrett Team 3G 211.644 mph (341 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Thursday May 7 – IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: 73 °F (23 °C), foggy in the morning
  • Practice summary: Practice opened early to make up for lost time on Wednesday. Veterans took to the track for the first time just before 11 a.m. At 2:19 p.m., Ryan Hunter-Reay spun exiting turn two and hit the outside wall down the backstretch. He was not injured. A busy day of practice saw 2,199 practice laps completed.[20]
May 7, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green Racing 225.478 mph (363 km/h)
2 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 225.237 mph (362 km/h)
3 6 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske 224.904 mph (362 km/h)
4 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 224.448 mph (361 km/h)
5 10 Dario Franchitti Chip Ganassi Racing 224.160 mph (361 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Friday May 8 – IndyCar Series Fast Friday practice
  • Weather: 67 °F (19 °C), cloudy, light rain in the afternoon
  • Practice summary: The final full day of practice was held before pole qualifying. Two significant crashes occurred. At 12:30 p.m., rookie Robert Doornbos went high and crashed into the wall in turn two. The car continued to slide down the backstretch. About two hours later, Scott Sharp lost the back end in the southchute, and crashed hard in turn two. Both drivers climbed from their cars. Largely aided by a tow, both Penske cars broke the 225 mph barrier. Midway through the afternoon, a light shower delayed practice for one hour.[21]
May 8, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 6 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske 225.981 mph (364 km/h)
2 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 225.438 mph (363 km/h)
3 10 Dario Franchitti Chip Ganassi Racing 224.984 mph (362 km/h)
4 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 224.822 mph (362 km/h)
5 7 Danica Patrick Andretti Green Racing 224.755 mph (362 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Time trials – Weekend 1

Saturday May 9 – Pole day
Hélio Castroneves sits in his car just prior to his pole-winning qualification run.
Front row qualifiers (L to R): Dario Franchitti, Hélio Castroneves, and Ryan Briscoe.
Scoring pylon at the close of pole day qualifications.
Windy conditions kept many speeds down during the morning practice session. Robert Doornbos crashed for the second day in a row in turn two, this time in his backup car. Penske teammates Ryan Briscoe (225.182 mph) and Hélio Castroneves (224.525 mph) again led the speed chart. Later in the afternoon, Dan Wheldon hit a gust of wind and backed the car into the wall in turn two. He would not go on to make a qualifying attempt.[23]
  • Time trials summary
The first wave of qualifiers began at 12 noon. Justin Wilson was the first car to complete an attempt. Marco Andretti was second out, and put himself on the provisional pole at 222.789 mph. It did not last long, as Penske driver Ryan Briscoe up the speed to 224.131 mph. Hélio Castroneves rounded out the first wave of time trials, filling the field to eleven cars, and tentatively putting himself second on the grid.
About an hour later, Dario Franchitti squeezed himself into the front row as second-fastest. Later, his Ganassi teammate Scott Dixon also completed a run, but did not threaten the top three. Meanwhile, Wilson's run was disallowed due to an improper ballast location, and Tony Kanaan was disqualified for being underweight.
At 3:45 p.m., Danica Patrick was the first to withdraw an earlier speed and go out for a second attempt. She improved her speed by nearly a mile per hour. Hélio Castroneves then withdrew and took to the track. His 224.864 mph run took over the pole position. Several drivers took their shot, but no one was able to bump Castroneves from the pole position. Sitting on the bubble, Paul Tracy endured seven instances where his car was re-instated to the field (due to cars withdrawing). However, he ultimately was bumped. With five minutes left in the day, Alex Lloyd made his first attempt. He surprisingly bumped his way into the field, and held on to make the top 11.[23]
May 9, 2009 – Pole Day Qualifying Results
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamQual.
Speed
1 3 Hélio Castroneves Penske Racing 224.864 mph (362 km/h)
2 6 Ryan Briscoe Penske Racing 224.083 mph (361 km/h)
3 10 Dario Franchitti Chip Ganassi Racing 224.010 mph (361 km/h)
4 02 Graham Rahal Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing 223.954 mph (360 km/h)
5 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 223.867 mph (360 km/h)
6 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green Racing 223.612 mph (360 km/h)
7 5 Mario Moraes KV Racing Technology 223.331 mph (359 km/h)
8 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green Racing 223.113 mph (359 km/h)
9 12 Will Power Penske Racing 223.028 mph (359 km/h)
10 7 Danica Patrick Andretti Green Racing 222.882 mph (359 km/h)
11 99 Alex Lloyd Sam Schmidt Motorsports 222.622 mph (358 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Sunday May 10 – Second day
  • Weather: 67 °F (19 °C), partly cloudy
  • Practice summary
On only his second lap of the day, rookie Mike Conway spun and crashed hard in turn one, badly damaging the car. Conway was transferred to Methodist Hospital with bruised lungs. Twenty minutes later, Alex Tagliani also wrecked in turn one, but was not injured.
During afternoon practice, John Andretti added to the D & R Team's woes, with a wreck in turn one. Sitting on the bubble, Andretti was practicing in expectations to re-qualify. The back end broke loose, and he slid into the wall. Graham Rahal was following close behind the crash. He went high to avoid debris, but Andretti's car slid right back into his path. Rahal took evasive action, and spun the car inside to avoid contact. He suffered four flat tires, but kept the car off the wall.[24]
  • Time trials summary
For the second day of time trials, positions 12–22 were open for qualifying. Sarah Fisher started out the day at noon. She slipped in turn one, and completed a disappointing run of 219.911 mph. After one hour, nine additional cars completed runs, including Vítor Meira, Paul Tracy, and Justin Wilson. Fisher withdrew her previous time, and on her second attempt, improved her speed to over 222 mph.
After some downtime, Dan Wheldon, who had wrecked in practice a day earlier, put his car solidly in the field at 222.777 mph. He was followed by surprising runs by Ed Carpenter, and Raphael Matos. At 223.492 mph, Matos was the seventh-fastest car overall in the field, the fastest car of the day, and the first rookie to qualify.
Late in the afternoon, several drivers began jockeying for the final few spots open for the day. Scott Sharp completed a slow run, but eventually withdrew the time. About an hour later, Sharp went back out to try again, this time bumping John Andretti. Andretti had just wrecked his car in practice, and was not going to return to the track for the day. Sharp's speed of 221.333 mph, however, put him on the bubble. He was scheduled to race in the ALMS Utah Grand Prix the following weekend, and hoped to qualify at Indy before departing for Utah.
With 25 minutes left in the day, A. J. Foyt IV bumped out Sharp, and put himself safely in the field. The move left E. J. Viso on the bubble at 221.745 mph. Ryan Hunter-Reay and Alex Tagliani both attempted to bump Viso, but both were too slow and waved off. With about one minute remaining until the 6 o'clock gun, Viso, Davey Hamilton and Sarah Fisher all pulled out of the qualifying line (Hamilton and Fisher were at that point, safely in the field). That allowed Scott Sharp to hurry onto the track just seconds before the gun. Sharp completed a run of 222.162 mph, and bumped out Viso.
May 10, 2009 – Second Day Qualifying Results
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamQual.
Speed
12 2 Raphael Matos  R  Luczo Dragon Racing 223.429 mph (360 km/h)
13 15 Paul Tracy KV Racing 223.111 mph (359 km/h)
14 14 Vítor Meira A. J. Foyt Enterprises 223.054 mph (359 km/h)
15 18 Justin Wilson Dale Coyne Racing 222.903 mph (359 km/h)
16 27 Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green Racing 222.805 mph (359 km/h)
17 20 Ed Carpenter Vision Racing 222.780 mph (359 km/h)
18 4 Dan Wheldon Panther Racing 222.777 mph (359 km/h)
19 41 A. J. Foyt IV A. J. Foyt Enterprises 222.586 mph (358 km/h)
20 16 Scott Sharp Panther Racing 222.162 mph (358 km/h)
21 67 Sarah Fisher Sarah Fisher Racing 222.082 mph (357 km/h)
22 44 Davey Hamilton Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 221.956 mph (357 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Practice – Week 2

Thursday May 14 – IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Cloudy, 69 °F (21 °C)
  • Practice summary: Practice resumed after three off-days, and track activity was busy. Oriol Servià was named to the Rahal Letterman entry, and took his first laps of the month. At 221.353 mph, Servia was the fastest among non-qualified cars. Veteran Buddy Lazier took his first laps of the month as well. No incidents were reported.[25]
May 14, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 5 Mario Moraes KV Racing Technology 222.739 mph (358 km/h)
2 6 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske 222.406 mph (358 km/h)
3 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 222.395 mph (358 km/h)
4 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 222.374 mph (358 km/h)
5 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green Racing 221.890 mph (357 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Friday May 15 – IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Partly cloudy, 75 °F (24 °C)
  • Practice summary: The final full day of practice saw heavy activity amongst qualified and non-qualified entries. Early in the afternoon, Tomas Scheckter took his first laps of the month. In addition, Mike Conway returned after his crash earlier in the week. The teams spent most of the day running in race trim. The cars took turns running in drafting packs. Of the non-qualified entries, Townsend Bell was fastest, with Oriol Servià next. No incidents on the track were reported. However, practice had to be halted at 5:33 p.m. when a number of the bricks from the famous start/finish line came loose in the mortar, and one chunk flew out.[26]
May 15, 2009 – Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 222.799 mph (359 km/h)
2 5 Mario Moraes KV Racing Technology 222.799 mph (359 km/h)
3 8 Townsend Bell KV Racing Technology 222.139 mph (357 km/h)
4 3T Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 222.395 mph (358 km/h)
5 6T Ryan Briscoe Team Penske 222.406 mph (358 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Time trials – Weekend 2

Saturday May 16 – Third day
Overnight rains delayed the start of practice until 11:15 a.m. Townsend Bell led the speed chart at 223.580 mph. After practice, rain fell again, closing the track for three hours.
  • Time trials summary
Track crews dried the track, and Third Day Time Trials began at 3:30 p.m. Ten qualifying attempts were made, and eight were run to completion. Robert Doornbos recovered from his crashes the previous week, and put in the fastest qualifying speed of the day (221.692 mph). Also qualifying early on with solid runs were Townsend Bell, Tomas Scheckter, and Oriol Servià. After a fast first lap, Buddy Lazier's first four-lap qualifying attempt sunk to a slow 216.487 mph.
After an hour of down time, John Andretti was the next car to attempt. His speed of 219.442 was slower than his speed last weekend, but it tentatively put him in the field. Meanwhile, Alex Tagliani and Mike Conway safely qualified. The day wrapped up with a full field of 33 cars. Milka Duno bumped out Buddy Lazier, then Stanton Barrett fell 0.0262 seconds shy of bumping his way into the field.[27]
May 16, 2009 – Third Day Qualifying Results
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamQual.
Speed
23 06 Robert Doornbos  R  Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing 221.692 mph (357 km/h)
24 8 Townsend Bell KV Racing Technology 221.195 mph (356 km/h)
25 17 Oriol Servià Rahal Letterman Racing 220.984 mph (356 km/h)
26 34 Alex Tagliani  R  Conquest Racing 220.553 mph (355 km/h)
27 19 Tomas Scheckter Dale Coyne Racing 220.212 mph (354 km/h)
28 24 Mike Conway  R  Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 220.124 mph (354 km/h)
29 13 E. J. Viso HVM Racing 219.971 mph (354 km/h)
30 21 Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision Racing 219.502 mph (353 km/h)
31 43 John Andretti Richard Petty Motorsports/Dreyer & Reinbold 219.442 mph (353 km/h)
32 23 Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 218.040 mph (351 km/h)
33 00 Nelson Philippe  R  HVM Racing 218.032 mph (351 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Sunday May 17 – Bump day
Favorable weather conditions during practice indicated that the track was faster than the previous afternoon. Milka Duno raised eyebrows after turning a lap of 221.568 mph, more than 3 mph faster than her standing qualifying speed. Veteran Bruno Junqueira took his first laps of the month, after landing a ride with Conquest Racing.
  • Time trials summary
Saturday's two slowest qualifiers, Nelson Philippe and Milka Duno withdrew their times and re-entered the field at much higher speeds. Bruno Junqueira, in his first attempt, bumped John Andretti from the field with ease. In the late afternoon several third day qualifiers followed Philippe and Duno's lead and requalified at faster speeds. Tomas Scheckter withdrew his speed, and greatly improved. Andretti's first two attempts to re-enter the field were unsuccessful, as the team was struggling to trim the car out. With 20 minutes remaining, Andretti's second attempt was just shy of bumping in, and would have been fast enough to bump Tomas Scheckter had Scheckter not withdrawn and re-qualified. He was followed by Buddy Lazier and Stanton Barrett, and both waved off their slow attempts. Neither had managed to gain speed during the afternoon practice, and neither broke 219 mph.
At 5:52 p.m., John Andretti pulled away for his third and final allotted attempt, bumping Ryan Hunter-Reay with a 221.316 mph average. Hunter-Reay got the final attempt to enter the field, and bumped Alex Tagliani from the field by a scant 0.0324 seconds. The 6 o'clock gun, signaling the end of qualifying, fired during Hunter-Reay's run, leaving Tagliani and Lazier waiting in line.[28]
May 17, 2009 – Bump Day Qualifying Results
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamQual.
Speed
26 19 Tomas Scheckter Dale Coyne Racing 221.496 mph (356 km/h)
27 24 Mike Conway  R  Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 221.417 mph (356 km/h)
28 43 John Andretti Richard Petty Motorsports/Dreyer & Reinbold 221.316 mph (356 km/h)
29 13 E. J. Viso HVM Racing 221.164 mph (356 km/h)
30 36 Bruno Junqueira Conquest Racing 221.115 mph (356 km/h)
31 23 Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 221.106 mph (356 km/h)
32 00 Nelson Philippe  R  HVM Racing 220.754 mph (355 km/h)
33 21 Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision Racing 220.597 mph (355 km/h)
OFFICIAL REPORT

Shortly before midnight on May 17, Conquest Racing announced that Alex Tagliani, who had failed to qualify, would replace Bruno Junqueira in the No. 36 car. Because of the replacement, the car was moved to the last spot in the starting grid.[29]

Carb Day

IndyCar Series final practice

The final hour-long practice was held.

Pit Stop Contest

Team Penske won the 32nd annual pit stop contest, their record tenth overall victory in the event. The teams of Hélio Castroneves and Marco Andretti met in the finals with Castroneves and his chief mechanic Rick Rinaman winning the $40,000 first prize after a 7.962-second pit stop.

Qualification round
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamTime
(seconds)
1 3 Hélio Castroneves Penske Racing 8.122
2 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green Racing 9.038
3 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 9.085
4 10 Dario Franchitti Chip Ganassi Racing 9.105
5 7 Danica Patrick Andretti Green Racing 9.246
6 21 Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision Racing 9.37
7 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green Racing 10.055
8 2 Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon Racing 11.291
  6 Ryan Briscoe Penske Racing Exempt
  02 Graham Rahal Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing Exempt

Note: Positions 5–8 are eliminated from the competition. Positions 3–4 advance to the quarterfinals. Positions 1–2 received a bye for the quarterfinals, and advanced directly to the semi-finals. Ryan Briscoe and Graham Rahal were randomly selected to bypass the qualifying round and advance directly to the quarterfinals.

Elimination bracket
  Quarterfinals     Semifinals     Finals
                           
      3 Penske (Castroneves) 7.636  
  6 Penske (Briscoe) 7.977     6 Penske (Briscoe) stalled    
  9 Ganassi (Dixon) 12.916         3 Penske (Castroneves) 7.962
      26 AGR (Andretti) 9.456
      26 AGR (Andretti) 8.931    
  10 Ganassi (Franchitti) 8.573     10 Ganassi (Franchitti) 11.589  
  02 NHL (Rahal) 9.385  

Starting grid
Row Inside Middle Outside
1 3 Hélio Castroneves  W  6 Ryan Briscoe 10 Dario Franchitti  W 
2 02 Graham Rahal 9 Scott Dixon  W  11 Tony Kanaan
3 5 Mario Moraes 26 Marco Andretti 12 Will Power
4 7 Danica Patrick 99 Alex Lloyd 2 Raphael Matos  R 
5 15 Paul Tracy 14 Vítor Meira 18 Justin Wilson
6 27 Hideki Mutoh 20 Ed Carpenter 4 Dan Wheldon  W 
7 41 A. J. Foyt IV 16 Scott Sharp 67 Sarah Fisher
8 44 Davey Hamilton 06 Robert Doornbos  R  8 Townsend Bell
9 17 Oriol Servià 19 Tomas Scheckter 24 Mike Conway  R 
10 43 John Andretti 13 E. J. Viso 23 Milka Duno
11 00 Nelson Philippe  R  21 Ryan Hunter-Reay 36 Alex Tagliani  R 1
  1. Alex Tagliani failed to qualify the #34 Conquest Racing entry, but replaced Bruno Junqueira in the team's #36 entry. Tagliani started from the 33rd position as a result of the driver change.
  •  W  = Former Indianapolis 500 winner
  •  R  = Indianapolis 500 rookie

Failed to qualify

No.DriverTeamReason
34 Alex Tagliani  R  Conquest Racing Bumped on Day 4. Replaced Junqueira in field.
91 Buddy Lazier  W  Hemelgarn Racing Bumped on Day 3. Too slow on Day 4.
98 Stanton Barrett  R  Team 3G Too slow on Day 3. Too slow on Day 4.

Race

The green flag was waved off on the first attempt after Hélio Castroneves hit the accelerator in the middle of turn four and the field did not maintain its traditional three-row lineup. The second attempt, although similar in formation, was given the green flag.[30]

During the first lap entering the first short chute, Mario Moraes squeezed Marco Andretti into the wall, crashing both drivers out. Both drivers were out, but Andretti returned briefly later in the race. Moraes held the view that Andretti ran into him, and both drivers expressed their frustration to the TV crews.[31] Andretti said that Moraes is "clueless," while Moraes believed that Andretti checked down on him.

Ryan Hunter-Reay also had a crash on lap 20 which saw his car slide into the pit lane.[32] This capped a brutal month of May for the Vision Racing driver, in which his car never seemed to get up to speed, and he barely even made the 500 field.

Graham Rahal and Davey Hamilton had similar crashes on laps 56 and 83 respectively.[32] Both slowed their cars between turns 3 and 4, drifted up the track, and hit the wall on the front straightaway. Rahal had a similar crash in the 2008 race.

On lap 98, while running third Tony Kanaan suffered a driveshaft failure while at speed in the back stretch, pitching his car into the wall.[33] Kanaan's steering was largely incapacitated and the Brazilian bounced off the backstretch wall and then hit the turn 3 wall. In television interviews, Kanaan appeared visibly shaken. The next day, Tony stated the hit was recorded at 175 G's.

During the first half of the 200-lap event, Scott Dixon, Castroneves and Dario Franchitti swapped the lead with the Dixon–Franchitti Target Chip Ganassi team leading much of the laps.[34] Dixon led laps 91 through 141, with Franchitti close behind to protect him.

Drivers Robert Doornbos, Nelson Philippe, and Justin Wilson, all former Champ Car World Series race winners, had incidents in the middle-to-late stages of the race that ended their respective days. Under the caution for the Philippe incident, Franchitti's fueler got stuck in his car, causing him to lose track position. With nobody to block for him, Dixon was powerless on the restart to stop Castroneves from passing him. The Penske Dallara-Honda cleared Dixon before the cars even entered turn 1. It turned out to be the winning pass.

Hélio Castroneves won his third Indianapolis 500, following victories in 2001 and 2002.

The scariest incident of the day occurred on lap 173, when Vítor Meira and Raphael Matos collided in turn 1. Both had heavy contact with the wall. Meira's car also flipped on its side and slid along the wall for hundreds of feet before falling back to all four wheels on the track. Meira was taken to Methodist hospital after the incident.[35] Meira broke two vertebrae in his back and spent the next two days in the hospital being fitted for a back brace.[36] Matos suffered a bruised right knee in the crash.

Ryan Briscoe had fallen back to the middle of the pack with a bad set of tires, but short-fueled in a late round of pit stops to claim second place, behind teammate Castroneves. Eventually Briscoe attempted to take the lead, with the intention of pulling Castroneves along, in order to help the Brazilian save fuel by using the draft. However, he had to pit during the Meira–Matos caution and was never a factor to win.

In the final 15 laps, Castroneves maintained a gap over Dan Wheldon, Danica Patrick and Townsend Bell. Castroneves and Wheldon kept similar lap speeds of 218 mph through the last 15 laps, but with a gap of roughly eight car lengths and Patrick on his tail, Wheldon could not catch the pole-sitter.

Castroneves won the event as his sister, Kati, and mother celebrated. The driver and his crew engaged in his traditional victory celebration, climbing the frontstretch catch fence, to the delight of the crowd. It was his third career Indianapolis 500 victory, with the others coming in 2001 and 2002. He is the sixth driver to win three 500s and the first foreign-born driver to do so.

Race results

All cars utilized Dallara chassis, Honda engines, and Firestone Firehawk tires.

93rd Indianapolis 500 – Race Results
RankCar
No.		DriverCar NameLaps Time/RetiredGridLaps LedPoints
1 3 Hélio Castroneves  W  Team Penske 200 3:19:34.6427 1 66 51
2 4 Dan Wheldon  W  National Guard Panther Racing 200 +1.9819 18 0 40
3 7 Danica Patrick Boost Mobile/Motorola (Andretti Green Racing) 200 +2.3350 10 0 35
4 8 Townsend Bell Herbalife–KV Racing Technology 200 +2.7043 24 0 32
5 12 Will Power Verizon Wireless (Team Penske) 200 +3.6216 9 0 30
6 9 Scott Dixon  W  Target Chip Ganassi Racing 200 +4.2988 5 73 30
7 10 Dario Franchitti  W  Target Chip Ganassi Racing 200 +4.9159 3 50 26
8 20 Ed Carpenter Menards/Vision Racing 200 +5.5096 17 0 24
9 15 Paul Tracy GEICO/KV Racing Technology 200 +6.5180 13 0 22
10 27 Hideki Mutoh Formula Dream (Andretti Green Racing) 200 +7.3312 16 0 20
11 36 Alex Tagliani  R  (All Sport) Conquest Racing 200 +10.5351 33 0 19
12 19 Tomas Scheckter MonaVie (Dale Coyne Racing) 200 +10.9874 26 0 18
13 99 Alex Lloyd HER CGR/SSM Racing 200 +11.1944 11 0 17
14 16 Scott Sharp Tequila Patrón Panther Racing 200 +11.4259 20 0 16
15 6 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske 200 +12.6695 2 11 15
16 41 A.J. Foyt IV ABC Supply/Foyt-Greer Racing 200 +15.4867 19 0 14
17 67 Sarah Fisher Dollar General/Sarah Fisher Racing 200 +15.9774 21 0 13
18 24 Mike Conway  R  (Purex) Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 200 +16.3488 27 0 12
19 43 John Andretti Window World (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Richard Petty Motorsports) 200 +18.0868 28 0 12
20 23 Milka Duno CITGO/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 199 +1 lap 30 0 12
21 14 Vítor Meira ABC Supply Co. A.J. Foyt Racing 173 Contact 14 0 12
22 2 Raphael Matos  R  US Air Force Luczo Dragon 173 Contact 12 0 12
23 18 Justin Wilson Z-Line Designs (Dale Coyne Racing) 160 Contact 15 0 12
24 13 E. J. Viso PDVSA HVM Racing 139 Steering[37] 29 0 12
25 00 Nelson Philippe  R  i drive green HVM Racing 130 Contact 31 0 10
26 17 Oriol Servià The Rahal Letterman DAFCA Special 98 Fuel pump[38] 25 0 10
27 11 Tony Kanaan Team 7-Eleven (Andretti Green Racing) 97 Contact 6 0 10
28 06 Robert Doornbos  R  (Hole in the Wall Camps) Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing 85 Contact 23 0 10
29 44 Davey Hamilton Hewlett Packard (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Kingdom Racing) 79 Contact 22 0 10
30 26 Marco Andretti Team Venom Energy (Andretti Green Racing) 56 Handling 8 0 10
31 02 Graham Rahal McDonald's Racing Team (Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing) 55 Contact 4 0 10
32 21 Ryan Hunter-Reay IZOD/William Rast/Vision Racing 19 Contact 32 0 10
33 5 Mario Moraes Azul Tequila–Votorantim–KV Racing Technology 0 Contact 7 0 10
Race average speed: 150.318 mph (241.913 km/h)
Lead changes: 6 between 4 drivers
Cautions: 8 for 61 laps
References: [39][40][41]

Crashes summary

Ten drivers crashed in the race:[32]

Broadcasting

Television

The race was televised in high definition in the United States on ABC, the 45th consecutive year on that network. ABC Sports signed a four-year extension to continue covering the Indianapolis 500 through 2012.[42] Marty Reid served as anchor for the fourth year. For the fourth time, the telecast utilized the Side-by-Side format for commercial breaks.

Time trials and Carb Day were shown live in high definition on Versus, part of a new ten-year contract with the network and the Indy Racing League. Bob Jenkins served as anchor, along with Robbie Buhl and Jon Beekhuis as analysts. Jack Arute, Robbie Floyd, and Lindy Thackston covered the pits.

ABC Television
Booth AnnouncersPit/garage reporters

Host: Brent Musburger
Announcer: Marty Reid
Color: Scott Goodyear
Color: Eddie Cheever

 Jack Arute
Vince Welch
Brienne Pedigo
Jamie Little

Radio

The race was broadcast on radio by the IMS Radio Network. Mike King served as anchor. For the first time, three living "Voices of the 500" joined together to offer commentary during the pre-race. King, Paul Page,[43] and Bob Jenkins recollected their experiences on network. Page remained in the booth to offer commentary and observations throughout the race. Jenkins, who had returned as a turn reporter in 2007-2008, was unable to serve during the race due to his commitments with Versus.

Jake Query moved from the pits to take the turn two location. For 2009, there were only three regular pit reporters, but they were joined by Dave Wilson, who moved from the booth to cover the garage area and infield hospital.

For 2009, as a gesture to the Centennial Era, a special change was made for the famous out-cue "Stay tuned for the greatest spectacle in racing." The out-cues for each commercial break were recordings of previous renditions by the former "Voices of the 500." Each commercial break would feature a different chief announcer, rotating through Sid Collins, Paul Page, Lou Palmer, Bob Jenkins, and Mike King.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network
Booth AnnouncersTurn ReportersPit/garage reporters

Chief Announcer: Mike King
Driver expert: Johnny Parsons
Historian: Donald Davidson
Live in-car reports: Davey Hamilton
Commentary: Paul Page
Commentary: Bob Jenkins

Turn 1: Jerry Baker
Turn 2: Jake Query
Turn 3: Mark Jaynes
Turn 4: Chris Denari

Dave Argabright (north pits)
Kevin Olson (center pits)
Kevin Lee (south pits)
Dave Wilson (garages)

See also

References
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  2. "All-New Chevrolet Camaro To Pace 93rd Indianapolis 500". indy500.com. 2009-02-26. Archived from the original on 5 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
  3. "Actor Josh Duhamel To Drive Chevrolet Camaro Pace Car At Indy 500". indy500.com. 2009-04-30. Archived from the original on 2012-02-16. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
  4. "Daily Trackside Report – Indianapolis 500 Race Day". Indy500.com. 2009-05-24. Archived from the original on 29 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  5. "Castroneves wins Indy 500". IndyStar.com. 2009-05-25. Archived from the original on 29 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
  6. "Tracy back for win". Indy500.com. 2009-04-20. Archived from the original on 2012-02-16. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  7. "Kanaan leads pack in search of 1st Indy 500 win". IndyStar.com. 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-05-04.
  8. "Tracy back for win". IndyCar.com. 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-04-18.
  9. "Miss America Katie Stam To Sing For Home Crowd At Indianapolis 500". indy500.com. 2009-05-01. Archived from the original on 6 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-01.
  10. "B-25 Bombers To Salute Disabled Veterans With Indy 500 Flyover". indy500.com. 2009-04-30. Archived from the original on 20 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-12.
  11. "IMS Celebrates 100th Anniversary Of 1st Event". indy500.com. 2009-01-16. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
  12. "OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon". 500Festival.com. Archived from the original on 13 April 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
  13. "Power to join rookie in mini-marathon race". The West Australian. 2009-04-30. Archived from the original on June 16, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
  14. "Preaching patience to rookies". IndyStar.com. 2009-05-05. Archived from the original on June 20, 2015. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
  15. "'3 Doors Down' to Headline Miller Lite Carb Day Concert". IndianapolisMotorSpeedway.com. 2009-03-13. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
  16. "Petty Motorsports to field Indy 500 car for Andretti". NASCAR.com. 2009-04-03. Archived from the original on 5 April 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
  17. "NASCAR is too hip for Times Square, but IndyCar still loves New York". OrlandoSentinel.com. 2009-05-05. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
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  21. "Daily Trackside Report: Indianapolis 500 Day 4". Indy500.com. 2009-05-08. Archived from the original on 16 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-08.
  22. "Indy Pole Day draws TV viewers". IBJ.com. 2009-05-15. Archived from the original on 2009-07-28. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
  23. "Daily Trackside Report: Indianapolis 500 Pole Day". Indy500.com. 2009-05-09. Archived from the original on 15 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
  24. "Daily Trackside Report: Indianapolis 500 Day 6". Indy500.com. 2009-05-10. Archived from the original on 15 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
  25. "Daily Trackside Report – Indianapolis 500 Day 7". Indy500.com. 2009-05-15. Archived from the original on 18 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-14.
  26. "Daily Trackside Report – Indianapolis 500 Day 8". Indy500.com. 2009-05-15. Archived from the original on 18 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
  27. "Daily Trackside Report – Indianapolis 500 Third Day Qualifying". Indy500.com. 2009-05-16. Archived from the original on 20 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
  28. "Daily Trackside Report – Indianapolis 500 Bump Day". Indy500.com. 2009-05-17. Archived from the original on 21 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
  29. Lewandowski, Dave (2009-05-17). "'Tag' in race after all". indycar.com. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
  30. "Emotional Castroneves finishes fast to capture third Indianapolis 500". CNN. 2009-05-24. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
  31. Archived May 31, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  32. "IndyCar Series : Ryan Hunter-Reay Crashes (Indianapolis 500 2009)". Retrieved April 24, 2018.]
  33. Ganguli, Tanya (24 May 2009). "Indy 500: IRL points leader Tony Kanaan is done, Scott Dixon leads". Orlando Sentinel blog. Archived from the original on 28 May 2009.
  34. Strang, Simon (2009-05-24). "Dixon leads as Kanaan crashes". Autosport. Archived from the original on 27 May 2009. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
  35. Strang, Simon (2009-05-24). "Patrick rues late-race yellow at Indy". Autosport. Archived from the original on 27 May 2009. Retrieved 24 May 2009.
  36. ESPN.com news services (24 May 2009). "Meira breaks back in crash with Matos". ESPN IndyCar.
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  40. "Antiguidades do Automobilismo | Vida de Paddock | Página 17". vidadepaddock.wordpress.com (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2017-08-18.
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  42. "ESPN, ABC to continue coverage of IndyCar Series". ESPN.com. 2008-08-07. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
  43. "Very Cool Moment!!". PaulPage.TV. 2009-04-29. Archived from the original on 25 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-06.
2008 Indianapolis 500
Scott Dixon		 2009 Indianapolis 500
Hélio Castroneves		 2010 Indianapolis 500
Dario Franchitti
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