New start time set for delayed Indianapolis 500

Field Level Media|published: Sun 26th May, 16:27 2024

Spectators walk toward the exit after an official evacuation order was issued due to severe weather, Sunday, May 26, 2024, ahead of the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The start of 108th Indianapolis 500 on Sunday has been delayed due to expected inclement weather in the area and is estimated to start at 4:44 p.m. EDT.

The delay was announced approximately 90 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the race. Fans were instructed to leave the grandstands at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, however they were allowed to return shortly after 2 p.m.

"The most important thing we've got to do today is make sure that the fans that are here right now and the fans that are coming continue to stay safe and that's really been our priority from the very beginning," track president J. Douglas Boles said earlier Sunday.

What do you say we do this thing? ??

Pre-Race for the 108th Running of the #Indy500 presented by @GainbridgeLife is coming up next!#ThisIsMay | #INDYCAR pic.twitter.com/otcdIVrIme
— Indianapolis Motor Speedway (@IMS) May 26, 2024

The 2.5-mile track takes approximately 90 minutes to dry. With inclement weather subsiding by 3 p.m. ET, Boles said the race would be able to start around at a time that would allow all 200 laps to be completed before dark.

The revised schedule still includes pre-race festivities including the traditional singing of "Back Home Again in Indiana" and the command for drivers to start their engines.

The delay significantly affects Kyle Larson, who was planning to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday night in Charlotte, N.C., after driving the Indy 500.

"I think our plan is to keep this as a priority," Larson said before the grandstands were emptied. "I think I would be here racing."

Josef Newgarden is the defending champion of the Indy 500.

--Field Level Media

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