2018 Indianapolis 500

102nd Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning body	IndyCar
Season	2018 IndyCar Season
Date	May 27, 2018
Winner	Will Power
Winning team	Team Penske
Average speed	166.935 mph (268.656 km/h)
Pole position	Ed Carpenter
Pole speed	229.618 mph (369.534 km/h)
Fastest qualifier	Ed Carpenter
Rookie of the Year	Robert Wickens
Most laps led	Ed Carpenter (65)
Pre-race ceremonies
National anthem	Kelly Clarkson[1]
"Back Home Again in Indiana"	Jim Cornelison[2]
Starting command	Tony George
Pace car	Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
Pace car driver	Victor Oladipo[3]
Starter	Paul Blevin
Honorary starter	Chris Hemsworth[4]
TV in the United States
Network	ABC (blacked out locally)
Announcers	Allen Bestwick, Scott Goodyear, Eddie Cheever
Nielsen ratings	3.1 (4.9 million viewers)[5]
Chronology
Previous Next 2017 2019

The 2018 Indianapolis 500 (branded as the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil for sponsorship reasons) was a Verizon IndyCar Series held on Sunday, May 27, 2018, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana.^[6] It was the premier event of the 2018 IndyCar Series. The race was won by Australian Will Power of Team Penske. Car owner Roger Penske collected his record extending 17th Indianapolis 500 victory. Chevrolet swept nine of the top eleven spots during qualifying, and finished 1st-2nd, Chevy's first Indy victory since 2015, and tenth overall. However, despite entering the month as prohibitive favorites to dominate the race, Chevy managed to place only two other cars in the top ten.

Much of the race was led by Will Power and Ed Carpenter, a race that was considered generally less-competitive that the previous few years, attributed largely to a newly-introduced aero kit package. Late in the race, pit strategy and a timely caution flag factored in. On a restart on lap 194, Oriol Servià, Stefan Wilson, and Jack Harvey were all attempting to stretch their fuel to the finish, gambling on a late caution, and a possible surprise victory. However, with four laps to go, both Wilson and Harvey were forced to pit for fuel, as was Servià a lap later. Will Power took the lead and cruised to victory, having led 59 laps. Polesitter Ed Carpenter led 65 laps and finished second, his best-career Indy finish. 2016 winner Alexander Rossi had an outstanding charge from 32nd to 4th, leading one lap during the race. Power became the first driver to win both the IndyCar Grand Prix and the Indianapolis 500, as well as the first driver to sweep both races in the same year. Later in the year, Team Penske also won the NASCAR Brickyard 400, becoming the second team in history to sweep both the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400 in the same year.

The month of May activities formally began on May 12 with the fifth running of the IndyCar Grand Prix on the combined road course. Practice for the Indianapolis 500 began on Tuesday May 15, and time trials was held May 19–20. Ed Carpenter won the pole position, his third career Indy pole. Carb Day—the traditional final day of practice, as well as the annual Pit Stop Challenge and Indy Lights Freedom 100, were held Friday May 25.