2007 Indianapolis 500

The 91st Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday May 27, 2007. It was the twelfth Indy 500 sanctioned by the Indy Racing League, and marked the fifth race of the 2007 IndyCar Series season. Hélio Castroneves started the race on the pole position.

91st Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500
Sanctioning bodyIndy Racing League
Season2007 IndyCar season
DateMay 27, 2007
Winner Dario Franchitti
Average speed151.774
Pole position Hélio Castroneves
Pole speed225.817
Fastest qualifier Hélio Castroneves
Rookie of the Year Phil Giebler
Most laps led Tony Kanaan (83)
Pre-race ceremonies
National anthemMembers of United States Armed Forces
"Back Home Again in Indiana"Race fans & the Purdue Band
Starting commandMari Hulman George
Pace carChevrolet Corvette
Pace car driverPatrick Dempsey
StarterBryan Howard
Honorary starterPeyton Manning
Estimated attendance300,000+ (estimated)[1]
TV in the United States
NetworkESPN on ABC
AnnouncersMarty Reid, Scott Goodyear, and Rusty Wallace
Nielsen ratings4.3 / 12
Chronology
Previous Next
2006 2008

The race began at 1:11 p.m. EDT,[2] and was televised in the United States on the ABC. The race was broadcast in high-definition for the first time. The race also was carried live on the IMS Radio Network and XM Satellite Radio.

On lap 113, the race underwent a lengthy rain delay, with Tony Kanaan tentatively sitting as the leader. After three hours, the rain ceased, the track was dried, and the race restarted shortly before 6:15 p.m. EDT. A crash on lap 162 between Dan Wheldon and Marco Andretti brought out the yellow flag with Dario Franchitti leading. Under the caution, rain began falling again and officials halted the race on lap 166. Dario Franchitti was declared the winner after leading 34 laps during the race.

All entries utilized ethanol, after 42 years of utilizing methanol. As part of a two-year roll-out, the cars used a 10% ethanol blend in 2006, and for 2007, the cars utilized a full ethanol mixture. Although branded as "100% percent fuel-grade", the fuel was actually a denatured 98% ethanol/2% gasoline blend (E98). The 2007 race was also the final 500 to see the Panoz chassis in competition.

Race schedule
Race schedule — May 2007
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
    1
 		 2
 		 3
 		 4
 		 5
Mini-Marathon
6
ROP		 7
ROP		 8
Practice		 9
Practice		 10
Practice		 11
Practice		 12
Time Trials
13
Time Trials		 14
 		 15
 		 16
Practice		 17
Practice		 18
Practice		 19
Pole Day
20
Bump Day		 21
 		 22
 		 23
Comm. Day		 24
 		 25
Carb Day		 26
Parade
27
Indy 500		 28
Memorial Day		 29
 		 30
 		 31
 		    
Color Notes
Green Practice
Dark Blue Time trials
Silver Race day
Red Rained out*
Blank No track activity

* Includes days where track activity
was significantly limited due to rain

ROP — denotes Rookie Orientation Program

Comm. Day — denotes 500 Festival Community Day

News
  • The pace car for the 2007 Indy 500 was a Chevrolet Corvette.[3] Patrick Dempsey was the driver.[4]
  • Kid Rock headlined the Miller Lite Carb Day concert.[5] Other performers during the month included Daughtry, Saliva, Augustana, and Bräck (a band headed by the former Indy 500 champion).[6]
  • Indianapolis Colts quarterback and Super Bowl XLI MVP Peyton Manning served as the grand marshal of the IPL 500 Festival Parade on May 26, and waved the green flag to start the 2007 Indy 500.[7]
  • No testing took place prior to the start of official May activities.[8]
  • The initial official entry list was released on April 10, 2007 featuring 69 cars, four former winners, and one rookie.[9]
  • Davey Hamilton's 02 car marks the first time in which a car number beginning with the digit "0" has been entered in the 500.[10]
  • Dreyer & Reinbold Racing was fined $25,000 for the use of an illegal fuel mixture, containing 27% methanol (no methanol is allowed) in one of its cars during Pole day. Team officials claimed this was due to an inexperienced crew member using an old container of fuel and was not intentional. Indy Racing League chief administrator Brian Barnhart called this "at least plausible," noting that the presence of water in the fuel mixture supports the claim that the fuel was old. The illegal mixture was used only during practice, not for a qualification attempt.[11] From 1974–2005, only methanol fuel was used in the Indianapolis 500; and from 1965 to 1973, the rules were crafted in such a way to encourage the use of methanol in order to be competitive. In 2006, a 10% ethanol-90% methanol mixture had been used in the IRL in transition to the ethanol fuel used in the IRL for the 2007 season.
  • Jim Nabors, who sang "Back Home Again in Indiana" during the pre-race festivities twenty-nine times from 1972 to 2006, missed the 2007 race due to an illness. The fans were asked to sing the song in his place.[12]

Practice (week 1)

Sunday May 6, 2007 - A.J. Foyt Opening Day & Rookie Orientation Program
  • Weather: Sunny, 73 °F
  • Practice summary: The first day of practice opened with a ceremonial lap celebrating A. J. Foyt's fiftieth year of participation at Indianapolis. Practice focused on the rookie tests of Milka Duno and Phil Giebler, as well as refresher tests by five veterans. Duno completed all four phases of her rookie test, and Giebler completed two. Michael Andretti posted the fastest speed of the day, while popular Davey Hamilton made his return to the cockpit, after a devastating 2001 crash at Texas. No incidents were reported.
May 6, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[13]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 39 Michael Andretti Andretti Green 219.871
2 12 Ryan Briscoe Luczo-Dragon Racing 218.216
3 02 Davey Hamilton Vision Racing 218.022
4 21 Jaques Lazier Playa Del Racing 216.467
5 23 Milka Duno  R  SAMAX Motorsports 214.128

Monday May 7, 2007 - Rookie Orientation Program
  • Weather: Sunny, 76 °F
  • Practice summary: The second day of Rookie Orientation saw the same seven drivers from the previous day's practice without incident. Rookie Phil Giebler finished the final two phases of his rookie test. Rookie Milka Duno completed the most practice laps of the day (74), while Michael Andretti posted the fastest speed for the second day in a row.
May 7, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[14]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 39 Michael Andretti Andretti Green 221.579
2 12 Ryan Briscoe Luczo-Dragon Racing 221.427
3 02 Davey Hamilton Vision Racing 220.214
4 21 Phil Giebler  R  Playa Del Racing 217.091
5 19 Jon Herb Racing Professionals 216.763

Tuesday May 8, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Sunny, 82 °F
  • Practice summary: The first full day of practice featured veterans on the track for the first time. Dan Wheldon led the speed chart as the first driver over 225 mph (362 km/h). Jon Herb was involved in the first crash of the month, doing a half-spin at the exit of turn two and crashing into the outside wall. Herb was not injured.
May 8, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[15]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 10 Dan Wheldon Target Chip Ganassi 225.074
2 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 224.996
3 2 Tomas Scheckter Vision Racing 224.783
4 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 224.622
5 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 224.564

Wednesday May 9, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Morning rain, afternoon clouds, 78 °F
  • Practice summary: Rain in the morning and early afternoon delayed the start of practice until 4:00 p.m. The two-hours session saw heavy action, with Dan Wheldon leading the speed chart for the second day in a row. No incidents were reported.
May 9, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[16]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 10 Dan Wheldon Target Chip Ganassi 226.391
2 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 225.820
3 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 224.902
4 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green 224.745
5 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 224.112

Thursday May 10, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Partly cloudy, 86 °F
  • Practice summary: The warmest day of the week thus far saw some of the fastest laps turned so far for the month. Scott Dixon set fast lap with two minutes remaining in the session. Danica Patrick was second fastest for the day. No incidents were reported
May 10, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[17]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 226.473
2 7 Danica Patrick Andretti Green 226.358
3 10 Dan Wheldon Target Chip Ganassi 224.902
4 2 Tomas Scheckter Vision Racing 226.161
5 12 Ryan Briscoe Luczo-Dragon Racing 225.995

Friday May 11, 2007 - "Fast" Friday IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Partly cloudy, 85 °F
  • Practice summary: The final day of practice before pole qualifying saw Scott Dixon turn the fastest lap of the month. Rookie Milka Duno crashed in the exit of turn 1. She spun and hit the SAFER barrier hard with the rear of the car, but she was not injured.
May 11, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[18]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 227.167
2 10 Dan Wheldon Target Chip Ganassi 226.650
3 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 226.236
4 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green 226.230
5 27 Dario Franchitti Andretti Green 226.189

Qualifying (first weekend)
Hélio Castroneves makes his pole-winning qualification run.

Saturday May 12, 2007 - AAMCO Pole Day
  • Weather: Sunny, high 82 °F
  • Qualifying summary: Pole day time trials were held under a new qualifying procedure, implemented in 2005, but not fully utilized in 2005 or 2006 due to rain delays. Only the top 11 cars would qualify on pole day, and the remaining would be "bumped" out. Each qualifying run consisted of four laps, and each car was allowed three attempts per day. Buddy Rice was the first out to qualify, but his speed ultimately did not make the top 11. During the first trip through the qualifying order, Team Penske pulled both Hélio Castroneves and Sam Hornish, Jr. out of line, and decided to attempt to qualify later in the day, when the temperatures would be cooler. After the initial qualifying runs, Dario Franchitti qualified for the provisional pole position. Later in the afternoon, both Castroneves and Hornish completed qualifying runs, but neither were unable to knock Franchitti off the pole. Hornish's first attempt would have been fast enough to take the pole, but he nearly hit the outside wall in the southchute on his second lap. Even with this error, however, Hornish's run was only 0.0327 seconds slower than Franchitti's. Almost immediately, Hornish withdrew and tried a second attempt, and again nearly took the pole, but on his final lap, his car bobbled in the north chute, and his second attempt was slower than his first. This would cost him a spot on the starting grid when Scott Dixon later withdrew his qualifying run and made another attempt, this one faster than Hornish's second attempt. With eight minutes left in qualifying, Castroneves' car was withdrawn, and he made a second attempt. After nearly four hours, Franchitti was finally knocked off the pole position. With only three minutes left, Tony Kanaan withdrew his first attempt, made the final qualifying run of the day. While his first three laps were fast enough to take the pole away from Castroneves, his last lap fell short and qualified second. This is Hélio Castroneves' second Indy 500 pole position. He also won the pole in 2003.

Sunday May 13, 2007 - Second Day Qualifying
  • Weather: Fair skies, high 74 °F
  • Qualifying summary: The second day of time trials filled positions 12-22 on the starting grid. The first hour saw heavy action, featuring strong runs from IndyCar Series regulars such as Scott Sharp (the first to qualify, and his 223.875 speed would hold up as the fastest of the day), Jeff Simmons and Darren Manning. Fan favorite Davey Hamilton also qualified with a solid speed. Later in the afternoon, Sarah Fisher became the second woman to qualify for the field. Bumping began with Marty Roth, Buddy Lazier and Jon Herb all being bumped. Herb went out later, and bumped himself back into the field, only to be bumped out a second time by Lazier. As time was running out, Jaques Lazier took to the track to try to bump himself into the top 22, and effectively bump his brother Buddy out. He was too slow and waved off the run. At the end of the day, two-time Indy 500 winner Al Unser, Jr. was the most notable driver bumped for the day, and had to attempt to qualify on the second weekend.

Practice (week 2)

Wednesday May 16, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Mostly cloudy early, clearing late, high 62 °F, 18 mph (29 km/h) WNW winds
  • Practice summary: The first day of practice for second-week deals. Only incident was a spin of Jimmy Kite's car when the gearbox casing of his PDM Racing Panoz cracked in turn 2, causing the left-rear suspension to fail. The car made moderate wall contact with the left-front corner and Kite was cleared to drive. Several teams that qualified during the first weekend tested race set ups and ran in packs, including Danica Patrick who set the fastest lap of the day. Jaques Lazier (217.159 mph) had the fastest lap among drivers who are not yet in the field.
May 16, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[21]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 7 Danica Patrick Andretti Green 221.189
2 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 220.556
3 6 Sam Hornish, Jr. Team Penske 220.484
4 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green 220.399
5 27 Dario Franchitti Andretti Green 220.131

Thursday May 17, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Mostly cloudy early, clearing late, high 65 °F, 16 mph (26 km/h) North winds
  • Practice summary: The second straight day of cold and windy weather resulted in fewer than 800 total laps being turned among 23 drivers. The only incident of the day resulted when Stephan Gregoire lost control on the exit of turn 1 and backed the car into the wall in the south short chute. Only light damage was sustained to the car, but Gregoire complained of back pain and was transported to Methodist Hospital where he was diagnosed with a fracture of the third vertebra endplate and was ruled out for the rest of the month. John Andretti made his first appearance in an IndyCar since 1994 and completed his refresher test. Scott Dixon turned the fastest lap of the day while drafting with teammate Dan Wheldon. Gregoire (217.851 mph) turned the fastest lap among drivers yet to qualify before his encounter with the wall.
May 17, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[22]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 219.985
2 10 Dan Wheldon Target Chip Ganassi 219.773
3 14 Darren Manning A.J. Foyt Racing 219.116
4 2 Tomas Scheckter Vision Racing 218.230
5 20 Ed Carpenter Vision Racing 217.995

Friday May 18, 2007 - IndyCar Series practice
  • Weather: Sunny, high 65 °F
  • Practice summary: The final full day of practice went incident free as 31 cars took to the track. All the front runners were running in packs, learning how their cars performed in "dirty air." Sam Hornish, Jr. turned the fastest lap of the day during such a session. The non-qualified cars of John Andretti and Roger Yasukawa both turned laps over 222 mph (357 km/h) without drafting assistance as their teams trimmed their cars out to prepare for qualifying. Friday marked the last day of full practice; however, all cars will be permitted to practice on Saturday and Sunday during down periods when no cars are presenting to qualify.
May 18, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds[23]
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 6 Sam Hornish, Jr. Team Penske 225.006
2 9 Scott Dixon Target Chip Ganassi 224.458
3 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 224.340
4 27 Dario Franchitti Andretti Green 224.253
5 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Green 223.668

Qualifying (second weekend)

Saturday May 19, 2007 - Third Day Qualifying
  • Weather: 72 degrees, sunny and fair skies
  • Qualifying summary: The third day of time trials focused on positions 23-33. Rookie Milka Duno was the first car to make an attempt, and she became the third female (along with Danica Patrick and Sarah Fisher) to qualify for the same race, an Indy 500 record, becoming the fifth female in Indy 500 history to start the race. Veterans Al Unser, Jr. and John Andretti qualified solidly, while second-week drivers Roger Yasukawa and Alex Barron also completed runs. In the final hour, Jon Herb finally made the field, after being bumped the weekend before, but rookie Phil Giebler crashed on his fourth and final lap. Roberto Moreno, just named to the ride Friday, along with Jimmy Kite, wrapped up the qualifying for the day. At the end of the day, the field stood with 32 qualified cars, one short of a full field. During the morning and afternoon, 32 cars made practice runs, most in preparations for race day. Since only 10 of the 11 allotted positions were filled, no bumping occurred Saturday.

Sunday May 20, 2007 - Bump Day Qualifying
  • Weather: Sunny and warm
  • Qualifying summary: The field filled to 33 cars just before 3 p.m. as Richie Hearn completed a qualifying attempt. Phil Giebler recovered from his crash the previous day and was able to put his car solidly in the field, bumping Jimmy Kite. Roberto Moreno withdrew his time from the previous day and improved his average by about 4 mph (6.4 km/h), putting Marty Roth on the bubble. P. J. Jones and Jimmy Kite spent the afternoon trying to get their cars up to speed. In the final hour, both Jones and Kite were running out of miles on their Honda engines leases, and neither had made much progress. Ultimately, Jones gave up. Meanwhile, Kite decided to go out and make last ditch qualifying effort, but his speed was not nearly fast enough to bump Roth. The 6 p.m. gun sounded, and Roth held on to qualify for his third Indy 500.

Carb Day

Friday May 25, 2007 - IndyCar Series final practice
  • Weather: cloudy, humid, 82 °F
  • Practice summary: All 33 qualified cars took to the track and turned in a complete hour-long final practice without incident. Later that evening at 3:30 the Miller Lite Concert started with headline act Kid Rock.
May 25, 2007 - Top Practice Speeds
RankCar
No.		DriverTeamBest
Speed
1 11 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 225.467
2 27 Dario Franchitti Andretti Green 223.807
3 39 Michael Andretti Andretti Green 223.575
4 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske 223.527
5 21 Jaques Lazier Playa Del Racing 223.468

Friday May 25, 2007 - Checkers/Rally's Pit Stop Challenge

Team Penske won the 31st annual pit stop contest, their record tenth overall victory in the event. The teams of Hélio Castroneves and Sam Hornish, Jr. (both Penske entries) met in the finals with Castroneves and his chief mechanic Rick Rinaman winning the $100,000 first prize after an 8.335-second pit stop.

Quarterfinals   Semifinals   Final
                   
    Hélio Castroneves (Penske)  7.6770   
Scott Sharp (RLR)  8.466      Scott Sharp (RLR)   stalled   
Scott Dixon (Ganassi)  11.650        Hélio Castroneves (Penske)   8.335 
    Sam Hornish, Jr. (Penske)   8.888 
    Sam Hornish, Jr. (Penske)   8.4471
Vítor Meira (Panther)   10.095      Vítor Meira (Panther)   11.7395   
Dario Franchitti (AGR)   11.773   

Qualifying chronology
Pole Day - Saturday, May 12, 2007[26][27]
AttemptTimeDayCar
No.		DriverLapsTotal
Time		Speed
(mph)		ResultPositionRank
112:03115 Buddy Rice42:42.3336221.766Qualified; bumped by Michael Andretti——
212:0819 Scott Dixon42:40.4630224.351Qualified; withdrawn——
312:12112 Ryan Briscoe42:40.4208224.410Qualified77
412:1818 Scott Sharp42:41.7994222.498Qualified; bumped by Marco Andretti——
512:21110 Dan Wheldon42:40.9401223.686Qualified; withdrawn——
612:27120 Ed Carpenter42:41.6630222.685Qualified; bumped by Castroneves——
712:31122 A. J. Foyt, IV42:42.5527221.467Qualified; bumped by Scheckter——
812:36155 Kosuke Matsuura42:42.2603221.866Qualified; bumped by Simmons——
912:4017 Danica Patrick42:40.6596224.076Qualified88
1012:4514 Vítor Meira21:21.4705220.939Waved off——
1112:48111 Tony Kanaan42:40.2719224.618Qualified; withdrawn——
1212:53127 Dario Franchitti42:39.8642225.191Qualified33
1312:5812 Tomas Scheckter42:41.5238222.877Qualified, bumping Foyt IV1014
141:03139 Michael Andretti42:41.5880222.789Qualified, bumping Rice1116
151:07117 Jeff Simmons42:41.6617222.687Qualified, bumping Matsuura; bumped by Hornish——
161:11126 Marco Andretti42:41.2186223.299Qualified, bumping Sharp913
174:1213 Hélio Castroneves42:40.0088224.988Qualified, bumping Carpenter; withdrawn——
184:3616 Sam Hornish, Jr.42:39.8969225.145Qualified, bumping Simmons; withdrawn——
194:5116 Sam Hornish, Jr.42:39.9227225.109Qualified55
205:2319 Scott Dixon42:39.9136225.122Qualified44
215:2818 Scott Sharp42:41.6209222.743Failed to qualify——
225:33117 Jeff Simmons42:41.8433222.437Failed to qualify——
235:38110 Dan Wheldon42:40.2557224.641Qualified66
245:42120 Ed Carpenter42:41.6871222.652Failed to qualify——
255:48114 Darren Manning42:41.6844222.656Failed to qualify——
265:5213 Hélio Castroneves42:39.4214225.817Qualified11
275:57111 Tony Kanaan42:39.4634225.757Qualified22
Sunday May 13, 2007[27][28]
AttemptTimeDayCar
No.		DriverLapsTotal
Time		Speed
(mph)		ResultPositionRank
2812:0228 Scott Sharp42:40.8041223.875Qualified129
2912:07255 Kosuke Matsuura42:41.7290222.595Qualified1718
3012:11299 Buddy Lazier42:43.3010220.452Qualified; bumped by Rice——
3112:16217 Jeff Simmons42:40.9352223.693Qualified1310
3212:20225 Marty Roth42:43.7193219.889Qualified; bumped by Foyt IV——
3312:25214 Darren Manning42:41.0950223.471Qualified1512
3412:30250 Al Unser, Jr.42:42.9233220.963Qualified; bumped by Herb——
3512:35219 Jon Herb42:43.7065219.906Qualified; bumped by Fisher——
3612:39202 Davey Hamilton42:41.9238222.327Qualified2021
371:0924 Vítor Meira42:41.9196222.333Qualified1920
381:45220 Ed Carpenter42:41.0777223.495Qualified1411
392:24222 A. J. Foyt, IV42:41.8607222.413Qualified, bumping Roth1819
403:2625 Sarah Fisher42:42.1914221.960Qualified, bumping Herb2122
413:34215 Buddy Rice42:41.5612222.826Qualified, bumping B. Lazier1615
425:29219 Jon Herb42:42.8440221.070Qualified, bumping Unser Jr.; bumped by B. Lazier——
435:53299 Buddy Lazier42:42.6165221.380Qualified, bumping Herb2224
445:58221 Jaques Lazier10:40.8700220.210Waved off——
Saturday May 19, 2007[27][29]
AttemptTimeDayCar
No.		DriverLapsTotal
Time		Speed
(mph)		ResultPositionRank
4512:03323 Milka Duno42:44.2129219.228Qualified2932
4612:07324 Roger Yasukawa42:41.6855222.654Qualified2317
4712:12319 Jon Herb32:02.5974220.233Waved off——
4812:25325 Marty Roth42:44.4421218.922Qualified3033
4912:59333 John Andretti42:42.3403221.756Qualified2423
502:20350 Al Unser Jr.42:42.9871220.876Qualified2525
515:14398 Alex Barron42:43.2871220.471Qualified2626
525:18321 Jaques Lazier42:44.0774219.409Qualified2831
535:23319 Jon Herb42:43.5561220.108Qualified2728
545:27331 Phil Giebler32:01.9724221.362Crashed in turn 2 on 4th lap——
555:44377 Roberto Moreno42:46.4902216.229Qualified; withdrawn on bump day——
565:54318 Jimmy Kite42:47.8104214.528Qualified; bumped by Giebler on bump day——
Bump Day - Sunday May 20, 2007[27][30][31]
AttemptTimeDayCar
No.		DriverLapsTotal
Time		Speed
(mph)		ResultPositionRank
572:39491 Richie Hearn42:43.7408219.860Qualified3229
583:52431 Phil Giebler42:43.9071219.637Qualified, bumping Kite3330
595:01477 Roberto Moreno42:43.4139220.299Qualified3127
605:57418 Jimmy Kite10:41.9103214.744Waved off——

Starting grid
Row Inside Middle Outside
1 3 Hélio Castroneves  W  11 Tony Kanaan 27 Dario Franchitti
2 9 Scott Dixon 6 Sam Hornish, Jr.  W  10 Dan Wheldon  W 
3 12 Ryan Briscoe 7 Danica Patrick 26 Marco Andretti
4 2 Tomas Scheckter 39 Michael Andretti 8 Scott Sharp
5 17 Jeff Simmons 20 Ed Carpenter 14 Darren Manning
6 15 Buddy Rice  W  55 Kosuke Matsuura 22 A. J. Foyt IV
7 4 Vítor Meira 02 Davey Hamilton 5 Sarah Fisher
8 99 Buddy Lazier  W  24 Roger Yasukawa 33 John Andretti
9 50 Al Unser, Jr.  W  98 Alex Barron 19 Jon Herb
10 21 Jaques Lazier 23 Milka Duno  R  25 Marty Roth
11 77 Roberto Moreno 91 Richie Hearn 31 Phil Giebler  R 

 W  = Former Indianapolis 500 winner;  R  = Indianapolis 500 rookie

Failed to Qualify

No.DriverTeamReason
18 Jimmy Kite PDM Racing Bumped, too slow
40 P.J. Jones Team Leader Motorsports Too slow
77 Stéphan Grégoire Chastain Motorsports Injured in practice crash

Race summary
The field in formation entering Turn 4 en route to the green flag.
Emergency crews attempting to dry the track during the red flag.
Dario Franchitti leads the field back to the final restart on Lap 162.
Marco Andretti's beaten car being towed after his wreck.
Race-winner Dario Franchitti celebrating with teammate Tony Kanaan in the rain.

Pre-race
  • Weather: 76 degrees, cloudy and rain, some patches of sunshine in the afternoon

Rain fell overnight, but stopped before the gates opened in the morning. At 7:45 a.m., rain began to fall again, and threatened to delay or wash out the race. Around 10:00 a.m., the rain stopped and maintenance crews began to dry the track. Despite the morning showers, Speedway chairperson Mari Hulman George gave the command to start engines on time as scheduled at 1:05 p.m. EDT.

Start

During the pace lap, the race nearly took a dramatic turn as pole-sitter Hélio Castroneves failed to start. After several attempts, his car finally fired, and he joined the field in turn 4. A rather ragged start saw Castroneves take the lead into the first turn, but Tony Kanaan slipped by to lead lap one. Green-flag racing continued until lap 11, when John Andretti lost a rear-view mirror, bringing out a debris caution yellow flag.

When racing resumed, Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti, and Scott Dixon all took their turn at the lead. Roberto Moreno caused the 2nd caution when he slid high in turn 1, slapped the wall, and hit the wall again in turn 2 before coming to rest. Jon Herb was the next car to be in an accident after he slid in turn 2 and hit the wall, ending his day. Milka Duno also spun in turn 1 and backed her car into the wall, damaging and ending her day as well.

On the 74th lap, Dario Franchitti took the lead for the first time, and led until he pit on the 89th lap. Around that time, officials were warning that rain was approaching the area. After several drivers sequenced through green-flag pit stops, Tony Kanaan led Marco Andretti. Suddenly, on the 99th lap, John Andretti got high in turn two, and crashed into the outside wall, bringing out the caution. Jeff Simmons found himself unexpectedly in the lead, but pitted a lap later, giving Marco Andretti the lead. With rain only a few miles away, the ensuing lap 107 restart could decide the winner. As the green came out, Tony Kanaan got the jump on Andretti, and took the lead in turn 1. Moments later, Phil Giebler spun and crashed in turn 1, bringing the yellow out once again. Before safety crews could clear the track, heavy rain fell, and the race was red flagged.

Red flag

When the race was stopped, 113 laps were completed. A race is required to go a minimum of 101 laps before it can be official. If rain continued the rest of the afternoon, it could be declared official. Andretti Green Racing was scored 1st-2nd-3rd with Kanaan leading, Marco Andretti second, and Danica Patrick third. After nearly three hours, the rain stopped and the track was dry. Shortly after 6:00 p.m., the field lined up in the pits for a restart.

Restart

Tony Kanaan took over where he left off and pulled away from the field. Danica Patrick got by Marco Andretti and took over second place. Approximately 30 laps of uninterrupted intense green flag racing followed. Another sequence of green-flag pit stops saw all of the leaders head to the pits. Jaques Lazier stayed out a couple of extra laps, and led the race for the first time in his career. After the stops, Kanaan returned to the lead, followed by defending champion Sam Hornish Jr.

Finish

On the 151st lap, Marty Roth slid high in turn 1 and smacked the wall, and started an exciting sequence of events. The skies were darkening, and rain was fast approaching again, which would certainly end the race for good. Under the yellow, many leaders pit for tires and fuel, while some drivers, including Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon, stayed out to gain track position. On the 156th lap, the field went back to green, however, in turn four, Tony Kanaan came up on the back of Jaques Lazier, sending Lazier into the wall, and sending Kanaan's car into a spin. He blew a tire and coasted into the pits. Moments later, the field assembled for what was expected to be the final restart before the rains came. Franchitti, working lap 163, held the lead into the backstretch. Behind him, Marco Andretti tangled with Dan Wheldon, and Andretti's car flipped down the backstretch. Buddy Rice was also involved. Before the track could be cleared, a heavy rainstorm fell on the track, and the race was called after 166 laps with Dario Franchitti declared the winner. A makeshift victory lane celebration was held indoors underneath the Pagoda, as had been done for Rice who also won in the rain in 2004.

As of the 2020 race, this was the most recent "500" to be shortened by rain.

Full race results
FinishStartChangeCar
No.		DriverC*LapsTime/RetiredTeamPoints
1 3 +2 27 Dario Franchitti D 166 2:44:03.5608 Andretti Green 50
2 4 +2 9 Scott Dixon D 166 +0.3610 Target Chip Ganassi 40
3 1 -2 3 Hélio Castroneves  W  D 166 +1.8485 Team Penske 35
4 5 +1 6 Sam Hornish Jr.  W  D 166 +4.6324 Team Penske 32
5 7 +2 12 Ryan Briscoe D 166 +5.2109 Luczo-Dragon Racing 30
6 12 +6 8 Scott Sharp D 166 +9.3470 Rahal Letterman 28
7 10 +3 2 Tomas Scheckter D 166 +11.3823 Vision Racing 26
8 8 0 7 Danica Patrick D 166 +12.1789 Andretti Green 24
9 20 +11 02 Davey Hamilton D 166 +15.4116 Vision Racing 22
10 19 +9 4 Vítor Meira D 166 +17.6991 Panther Racing 20
11 13 +2 17 Jeff Simmons D 166 +19.7119 Rahal Letterman 19
12 2 -10 11 Tony Kanaan D 166 +21.4339 Andretti Green 18+3
13 11 -2 39 Michael Andretti D 166 +35.1235 Andretti Green 17
14 18 +4 22 A.J. Foyt IV D 165 +1 Lap Vision Racing 16
15 26 +11 98 Alex Barron D 165 +1 Lap CURB/Agajanian/Beck Motorsports 15
16 17 +1 55 Kosuke Matsuura D 165 +1 Lap Panther Racing 14
17 14 -3 20 Ed Carpenter D 164 +1 Lap Vision Racing 13
18 21 +3 5 Sarah Fisher D 164 +2 Laps Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 12
19 22 +3 99 Buddy Lazier  W  D 164 +2 Laps Sam Schmidt Motorsports 12
20 15 -5 14 Darren Manning D 164 +2 Laps A.J. Foyt Racing 12
21 23 +2 24 Roger Yasukawa D 164 +2 Laps Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 12
22 6 -18 10 Dan Wheldon  W  D 163 Crash Target Chip Ganassi 12
23 32 +9 91 Richie Hearn D 163 +3 Laps Hemelgarn Racing/Racing Professionals 12
24 9 -15 26 Marco Andretti D 162 Crash Andretti Green 12
25 16 -9 15 Buddy Rice  W  D 162 Crash Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 10
26 25 -1 50 Al Unser, Jr.  W  D 161 +5 Laps A.J. Foyt Racing 10
27 28 +1 21 Jaques Lazier P 155 Crash Playa Del Racing 10
28 30 +2 25 Marty Roth D 148 Crash Roth Racing 10
29 33 +4 31 Phil Giebler  R  P 106 Crash Playa Del Racing 10
30 24 -6 33 John Andretti D 95 Crash Panther Racing 10
31 29 -2 23 Milka Duno  R  D 65 Crash SAMAX Motorsport 10
32 27 -5 19 Jon Herb D 51 Crash Racing Professionals 10
33 31 -2 77 Roberto Moreno P 36 Crash Chastain Motorsports 10
Race average speed: 151.774 mph (244.257 km/h)
Official box score

*C Chassis: D=Dallara; P=Panoz. All cars in the 2007 Indianapolis 500 used Honda engines and Firestone tires.

Race Leaders

Nine drivers led the race, with a total of twenty-three lead changes.[32]

LapsLeader
1-2Tony Kanaan
3Hélio Castroneves
4-13Tony Kanaan
14-17Hélio Castroneves
18-26Tony Kanaan
27-40Hélio Castroneves
41-46Marco Andretti
47-53Scott Dixon
54-68Tony Kanaan
69-71Scott Dixon
72-73Sam Hornish, Jr.
74-88Dario Franchitti
89Scott Dixon
90Michael Andretti
91-100Tony Kanaan
101Jeff Simmons
102-107Marco Andretti
108-116Tony Kanaan
117Marco Andretti
118-136Tony Kanaan
137-143Dario Franchitti
144-145Jaques Lazier
146-154Tony Kanaan
155-166Dario Franchitti
  
DriverLaps led
Tony Kanaan83
Dario Franchitti34
Hélio Castroneves19
Marco Andretti13
Scott Dixon11
Sam Hornish, Jr.2
Jaques Lazier2
Michael Andretti1
Jeff Simmons1

Caution Periods

There were eleven caution periods during the race, with a total of fifty-five laps run under yellow, including the race's final lap.[32]

LapsCause
11-15Debris in turn 1 from John Andretti
38-43Roberto Moreno crash, turn 1
52-59Jon Herb crash, turn 2
66-70Milka Duno crash, turn 1
99-106John Andretti crash, turn 2
108-111Phil Giebler crash, turn 1
112-113rain (red flag after lap 113)
114-115restart
151-156Marty Roth crash, turn 1
157-161Tony Kanaan/Jaques Lazier crash, turn 4
163-166Marco Andretti/Dan Wheldon/Buddy Rice/Ed Carpenter crash, backstretch
rain, race declared official on lap 166

Awards

The Victory Celebration was held Monday May 28, 2007.[33] Some of the many awards handed out during the evening included:

Broadcasting

Television

The race was broadcast in the United States on ABC for the 43rd consecutive year. Time trials were shown live on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2. For the first time, the race would be aired in high definition.

This was the final 500 broadcast for Rusty Wallace as he was involved with ESPN on ABC NASCAR broadcasts.

For the second year in a row, the telecast utilized the Side-by-Side format for commercial breaks.

ABC Television
Booth AnnouncersPit/garage reporters

Host: Brent Musburger
Announcer: Marty Reid
Color: Scott Goodyear
Color: Rusty Wallace

 Jack Arute
Vince Welch
Brienne Pedigo
Jamie Little

Radio

The race was broadcast on radio by the IMS Radio Network for the 55th consecutive year. Mike King served as anchor. Davey Hamilton, who previously served as the "driver expert" on the network, returned to cockpit for the first time since 2001. After six years recovery from his serious crash, he offered live in-car reporting to the broadcast during caution periods.

Making a popular return to the IMS Radio Network was former "Voice of the 500" Bob Jenkins. In 2006, Jenkins had worked on the Speedway public address system, but for 2007, he took over the turn two reporting location. Jenkins filled the spot previously held by Adam Alexander, who departed the network.

For the third year in a row, Kevin Olson conducted his annual pre-race interview with David Letterman. Olson served as a pit reporter in the center pits during the early stages of the race, then later moved to cover the garages and track hospital.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network
Booth AnnouncersTurn ReportersPit/garage reporters

Chief Announcer: Mike King
Driver expert: Johnny Parsons
Color: Dave Wilson
Historian: Donald Davidson
Live in-car reports: Davey Hamilton
Commentary: Chris Economaki

Turn 1: Jerry Baker
Turn 2: Bob Jenkins
Turn 3: Mark Jaynes
Turn 4: Chris Denari

 Jake Query (north pits)
Dave Argabright (center pits)
Kevin Lee (south pits)
Kevin Olson (garages/hospital)

See also
  • 2007 Chevrolet Corvette pace cars

Notes

References
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Works cited
2006 Indianapolis 500
Sam Hornish, Jr.		 2007 Indianapolis 500
Dario Franchitti		 2008 Indianapolis 500
Scott Dixon
Preceded by
Kansas Lottery Indy 300		 IRL IndyCar Series
round 5
2007		 Succeeded by
ABC Supply Company A.J. Foyt 225
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