A new betting favorite to win the 108th Indianapolis 500 has emerged, and it is not one of the three Team Penske drivers.
Following Saturday’s complete field qualifying session for the 108th running of the Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, DraftKings Sportsbook named four drivers as co-favorites to win next Sunday afternoon’s edition of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
The three drivers listed at +700 were Josef Newgarden, Will Power, and Scott McLaughlin from Team Penske, as well as Kyle Larson from McLaren-Hendrick.
Prior to qualifying, none of the four drivers was a favorite or co-favorite for this year’s 200-lap race on the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Speedway in Indiana.
Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing was the favorite after previously being a co-favorite with Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward heading into practice week.
Now one of those four drivers has established himself as the favorite at +650: Kyle Larson.
Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, has never competed in an IndyCar race and is seeking to become the fifth driver to complete the Memorial Day Double, first competing in the Indy 500 and then flying to Charlotte Motor Speedway to compete in NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600. Only one driver, Tony Stewart in 2001, has ever completed all 1,100 miles on the same day.
Larson concluded Saturday’s qualifying session with the sixth best average speed (full results here) over a four-lap effort, while Power led the Team Penske trio to the top three. Roger Penske’s drivers also swept the top three spots on a four-lap run during the Fast Friday practice session, with Newgarden leading the way.
Alexander Rossi, not Larson, led Arrow McLaren to fourth place. Rossi (+900) trails the Team Penske trio (+700) and O’Ward (+800). The top six favorites advanced to the Top 12 qualifying round on Sunday afternoon.
Palou’s odds increased from +400 to +1000. He still has the shortest chances among those who did not make it to the Top 12 session. Prior to his sixth Indy 500, he qualified in a career-low 14th place, which was nevertheless the best effort among Chip Ganassi Racing’s five-car lineup.
Teammate Scott Dixon, a five-time polesitter who will make his 22nd Indy 500 start, qualified in a career-low 21st.
Sunday qualifying set
Team Penske’s drivers remain big favorites to win the Indy 500 pole position in today’s Firestone Fast Six qualifying session, which will comprise the top six drivers from the previous Top 12 session.
A complete qualifying order is available here.
In 32 Indy 500 races, none of Team Penske’s three drivers has ever started on pole. Power has the most pole positions in IndyCar history, yet he has never won the season’s biggest event.
Power won the Indy 500 in 2018, while Newgarden won it last year and is seeking to become the first driver to win it in consecutive years since Helio Castroneves did so in his first two starts in 2001 and 2002.
None of the 12 drivers currently in contention for this year’s Indy 500 pole have ever begun the race from first place.
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