2006 Indianapolis 500


The 90th Indianapolis 500 was an IndyCar Series motor race held on Sunday, May 28, 2006, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. It was the fourth round of the 2006 IndyCar Series season. The race was won by Sam Hornish Jr., who earned his first and only win at Indianapolis. The win marked the record-extending fourteenth Indianapolis 500 victory for Team Penske. Hornish was one of the pre-race favorites to win, after setting fast laps during practice sessions and winning the pole position. Hornish, a two-time Indy Racing League champion had never finished in the top ten at Indy in six previous starts. Hornish go on to the 2006 IndyCar Series championship, becoming the second driver in a row to win the Indianapolis 500 and season championship in the same year.
The track opened for practice on May 9. Time trials were scheduled to be held on May 13–14 and May 20–21, however, the first two days were rained out. Pole qualifying was rescheduled for May 20, and Bump Day was held on May 21. Carb Day, the traditional final day of practice, was held on May 26, alongside the Pit Stop Challenge and the Freedom 100.
In one of the most dramatic finishes in Indy 500 history, 19-year old rookie Marco Andretti took the lead with three laps to go. Marco passed his father Michael Andretti on the outside of turn one. Michael Andretti, a veteran of 14 previous Indy starts, had come out retirement to race alongside his son. Marco Andretti battled Sam Hornish Jr. over the final two laps, holding off the challenge until the final straightaway. On the final lap, Hornish passed Marco Andretti about 450 feet from the finish line to take the win. It was the first time in the 90-year history of the event that a driver would successfully make a pass for the lead on the final lap en route to victory. Despite Andretti's loss, he was unanimously named Rookie of the Year. Michael Andretti, still winless as a driver at Indianapolis, came home third.
The margin of victory was 0.0635 seconds – just over one car-length – which was the second-closest finish in Indy 500 history at the time. Defending race winner Dan Wheldon dominated much of the race, leading a race-high 148 laps. However, a small tire puncture forced him to make his final pit stop earlier than planned, which coupled with an untimely caution period, saw him slip to fourth place at the finish.

Race background

The Indianapolis 500, commonly shortened to the Indy 500, is an annual race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a four-turn, asphalt oval circuit, in Speedway, Indiana, United States. The event is contested by "Indy cars", a formula of professional-level, single-seat, open cockpit, open-wheel, purpose-built race cars. Since its inaugural running in 1911, the Indianapolis 500 has become a staple of Memorial Day weekend and one of, if not the, most prestigious races in motorsports. Dan Wheldon was the defending race winner.
Chevrolet and Toyota both announced their withdrawals from the IndyCar Series after the 2005 season, leaving Honda as the sole engine provider for all teams for 2006 and beyond. IndyCar's single-engine program allowed costs to be reduced for teams who were looking to buy or lease an engine. It marked the first time since 1960 that every entry in the Indianapolis 500 would be fielded with the same engine.
A new series initiative introduced the use of ethanol fuel. As part of a two-year roll-out, all entries for 2006 were required to utilize a 10% ethanol and 90% methanol fuel blend. While this was the first time all entries in the Indianapolis 500 utilized ethanol fuel, it was not the first time that ethanol was used during the race. Leon Duray's Miller car was fueled by ethyl alcohols in 1927, and Art Sparks claimed to have used ethanol in his cars in 1937–1939.
The final hour of each practice and qualifying session for the Indianapolis 500 was known as "Happy Hour" because the cooler track temperatures, caused by the sun setting behind the front-stretch grandstands, produced significantly faster speeds. As a result, many teams would scramble to put down the fastest lap of the session before time expired. However, a month prior to the 2006 Indianapolis 500, Indiana began using daylight saving time for the first time in over 30 years, inadvertently ending the "Happy Hour" tradition.

2006 IndyCar Series

The Indianapolis 500 was the fourth round of the 2006 IndyCar Series season. Marlboro Team Penske driver Hélio Castroneves entered the event with the Drivers' Championship lead, having earned 146 points and two wins in the first three races of the season. Wheldon trailed Castroneves by 42 points. Sam Hornish Jr. earned 94 points and placed third in the standings. Scott Dixon, with 92 points, and Tony Kanaan, with 89 points, took the fourth and fifth positions, respectively.

Race schedule

Entry list

The official entry list for the 2006 Indianapolis 500 was released on April 13, 2006. Entry invitations were mailed to eligible race teams on February 22, and the deadline was set on April 5. Sixty-six cars for 38 entries were featured on the entry list, with 26 drivers being named to the entries. By May 7, the entry list had been updated, with 31 car-driver combinations being announced. Among the drivers entered were six former winners of the race and three race rookies. Each car used Honda Indy V8 engines and Firestone tires. Dallara and Panoz were the chassis providers.

Team and driver changes

The biggest storyline heading into the Indianapolis 500 revolved around Wheldon, who opted to drive for Target Chip Ganassi Racing in 2006, despite winning the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar championship with Andretti Green Racing the previous season. Replacing him in the 26 entry would be third-generation driver Marco Andretti, who was one of the three race rookies. Andretti's father, Michael Andretti, announced his comeback from retirement to compete in the Indianapolis 500 alongside his son, driving the one-off 1 entry for Andretti Green Racing.
Similarly, 1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever made his return to the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500 for the first time since 2002. During his hiatus, Cheever exclusively focused his efforts on his ownership role at Cheever Racing. Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr. also came out of retirement and returned to the Indianapolis 500. He was teamed with 1996 winner Buddy Lazier in the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing-prepared 31 car.
On March 23, Rahal Letterman Racing filed three entries for the Indianapolis 500, which were to be driven by 2004 race winner Buddy Rice, 2005 Rookie of the Year driver Danica Patrick, and series rookie Paul Dana. However, after Dana was killed in a practice crash at Homestead–Miami Speedway on March 26, team co-owner Bobby Rahal selected seven-time Indy Pro Series winner Jeff Simmons to drive Dana's 17 entry for the remainder of the season, including the Indianapolis 500.

Testing and Rookie Orientation

The Rookie Orientation and Refresher Programs, the latter of which were for drivers who didn't race in the previous Indianapolis 500, took place at Indianapolis on May 7 and May 8, with ten drivers partaking in the test sessions. Rookie Orientation consists of four phases; the first phase features speeds between, the second phase features speeds between, the third phase features speeds between, and the fourth phase features speeds above. The rookie drivers had to pass all four phases in order to be eligible to race in the Indianapolis 500.

Testing – October 2005

On October 6 and October 7, 2005, a test was conducted at Indianapolis to evaluate Firestone tires. Castroneves, Wheldon, and Rice, all of whom were past Indianapolis 500 winners, were the lone participants. No incidents were reported, and all three drivers were happy with the test.

Open test – Wednesday April 5

An open testing session was held on April 5, 2006, in order to assess the efficiency of the Honda engines. Seventeen drivers participated in this open test session, which started 42 minutes late due to cool track temperatures. As a result of the late start, the session was extended by an hour and finished at 5:00 PM. Dixon was fastest in the session with a speed of. A total of 1,404 laps were completed by the seventeen drivers without incident. Lazier and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing were scheduled to take part in this testing session, but withdrew after one of their cars suffered an electrical fire at Homestead.

Opening Day and Rookie Orientation – Sunday May 7

May 7, the opening day for the Indianapolis 500, began with a celebration of the Andretti family. Mario, Michael, and Marco Andretti completed a three-wide ceremonial lap around Indianapolis, with Mario driving the same car with which he won the pole position for the 1967 Indianapolis 500. At 12:10 PM local time, Marco Andretti became the first driver to complete a lap on opening day, and passed the Rookie Orientation along with P. J. Chesson. Michael Andretti, Unser Jr., Arie Luyendyk Jr., and Townsend Bell participated on the first day of refresher testing, with Andretti setting the fastest lap of the day at a speed of and easily passing his test. Four caution flags were thrown during the session, three of which were for debris and one for a mechanical issue involving Bell, who stopped his car at the entrance of pit lane.

Rookie Orientation – Monday May 8

On May 8, the second day of Rookie Orientation, eight drivers took to the track under sunny conditions. Bell set the fastest lap of the five-hour, incident-free session with a lap of. He and Thiago Medeiros passed the rookie test, while Luyendyk Jr., Larry Foyt, and Unser Jr. all passed the refresher test. With an hour remaining in the session, Michael Andretti lent his son his 1 Honda for a handful of laps around the circuit because of complaints that Marco had about his own 26 Honda regarding grip.