Rookie Takes 100th Indianapolis 500
May 31, 2016
On Sunday, May 29, Alexander Rossi, a 24-year old rookie driver from California, pushed his race car to the limit in the waning laps of the Indianapolis 500. As other contenders took late refueling pit stops—including Colombian Carlos Munoz, who was leading with three laps to go—Rossi took a chance and kept going. His fuel gauge was sitting on E—a pins-and-needles moment of fearful exhilaration for any driver—but this was the Indianapolis 500, the premier event of the Indy Racing League (IRL) and one of the world’s most famous and prestigious auto races. Rossi, who began the race in the 11th position out of 33, saw his only chance was to literally finish on fumes—and he did. His car conked out as he crossed the finish line 4.5 seconds ahead of Munoz to win the race. “I’m out of fuel, guys,” Rossi radioed his crew after taking the checkered flag. A topping up of fuel gave his car the boost it needed to make the celebration in victory lane. Rossi, who began his racing career in Formula One, recently joined the IRL but had finished no better than 10th in five previous races.
The Indianapolis 500 (often shortened to Indy 500) takes place on the 2½-mile (4.02-kilometer) oval track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. There are 33 starting positions. Drivers with the highest average speeds in four qualifying laps earn the chance to race. The first driver to complete 200 laps around the track—a distance of 500 miles (805 kilometers)—wins the race. The first Indianapolis 500 took place in 1911, but racing was suspended for two years during World War I (1914-1918) and four more years during World War II (1939-1945). This year’s race was the 100th Indy 500.