| Race details | |
|---|---|
| 18th round of the 2011 IndyCar Series season | |
 The layout of Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where the race was held | |
| Date | October 16, 2011 |
| Official name | IZOD IndyCar World Championship |
| Location | Las Vegas Motor Speedway Clark County, Nevada, U.S. |
| Course | Oval 1.544 mi / 2.485 km |
| Distance | 12 laps 18.528 mi / 29.817 km |
| Scheduled Distance | 200 laps 308.800 mi / 496.965 km |
| Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 93.9 °F (34.4 °C); wind speeds up to 17.1 miles per hour (27.5 km/h)[1] |
| Pole position | |
| Driver | Tony Kanaan (KV Racing Technology) |
| Time | 50.0582, 222.078 mph (357.400 km/h) |
| Podium | |
| First | None, race abandoned after 12 laps |
| Second | N/A |
| Third | N/A |
The 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship was the scheduled final race of the 2011 IZOD IndyCar series. It was to be run at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada USA on October 16, 2011, and was scheduled for 200 laps around the facility's 1.544 mile oval.
The race, however, was cancelled after only 12 laps had been run. Contact between drivers Wade Cunningham and James Hinchcliffe triggered a massive chain reaction crash that involved fifteen of the thirty-four entrants in the event and resulted in the death of former IndyCar Series champion Dan Wheldon, less than five months after his second Indianapolis 500 victory.[2][3] Open wheel racing would not return to the Las Vegas area until 12 years later, when Formula One's 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix was held.
- ^ "2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Yankee Publishing. Archived from the original on October 23, 2014. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
- ^ "Dan Wheldon's fatal crash at LVMS recalled 10 years later". October 16, 2021.
- ^ Garrett, Jerry (October 18, 2011). "Worries Circled Las Vegas Track Before a Pileup". The New York Times.