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2017 Indianapolis 500: Car-by-car Preview (part two)

Is a Red Bull alliance with Honda on the cards? (AFP / Jorge Guerrero)
Roar Guru
27th May, 2017
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We’re down to the drivers at the pointy end of the field of 33 for the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500.

Outside of a few possibilities starting back in the pack – Juan Pablo Montoya, Helio Castroneves, Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud and perhaps even James Hinchcliffe – I’ve got a feeling that Sunday’s winner will come from the drivers below.

14. Graham Rahal (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing – Honda)
The talented second-generation racer has emerged in recent seasons, driving for a team owned by his father, Indy 500 champion Bobby Rahal, and former talk show host David Letterman. He’s been the lone shining light for Honda over the last few years while Chevrolet dominated, but this year has so far been disastrous – but he showed speed and smarts to carve through the field at the Indianapolis GP two weeks ago, and a win on Sunday would be enormous. He can win from 14th.

13. Mikhail Aleshin (Schmidt-Peterson Motorsports – Honda)
The crazy Russian could win it or he could bin it – in a similar vein to Takuma Sato, you never quite know what you’ll get with Aleshin, and it varies wildly day to day and even session to session. He’s been pretty fast this month and could really throw a cat among the pigeons on Sunday. If nothing else, Aleshin is fun to watch.

12. Oriol Servia (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing – Honda)
The veteran Spaniard slots neatly into the Rahal squad for another year, and his speed in out-qualifying Graham Rahal on the weekend surprised many. He mix speed with savvy, and Servia is a dark horse you’ll want to keep an eye out for.

11. Ed Jones (Dale Coyne Racing – Honda)
This has unquestionably the best surprise of the month, especially considering everything that’s happened to Dale Coyne’s team. The rookie, with a mere five IndyCar starts under his belt, has been at or near the mark since they unloaded and will start 11th on Sunday for the biggest race of his life. A top five finish would be fantastic, but if there’s attrition and if Jones continues to show the speed and composure he has all month, there’s a chance of more.

10. Ryan Hunter-Reay (Andretti Autosport – Honda)
The Floridian was seriously impressive in qualifying on Sunday, which meant he’ll start as far up the field as possible after missing out on making the fast nine. It shows that there’s plenty of speed to be burned on Sunday. RHR is a great driver, an IndyCar champion and an Indianapolis 500 winner, and the run he put together on Sunday was an ominous one. Hunter-Reay can definitely win.

9. Will Power (Team Penske – Chevrolet)
Australia’s great hope for an Indianapolis 500 victory, the Queenslander has been there or thereabouts all month – not to mention a dominant winner on the Indianapolis road course to open proceedings – despite the engine performance gap between Chevrolet and Honda. He is by far and away the best of the Penske brigade, and he’s a popular pick among folks who know far more than I do about IndyCar racing to at least be in with a shot late. Without a doubt Power winning would be one of Australia’s great sporting stories.

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8. Marco Andretti (Andretti Autosport – Honda)
Speaking of a victory that’d bring the house down, third-generation racer Marco winning and breaking the Andretti curse would send the crowd into raptures. While displaying spotty form away from Indy during his career, Marco has always been fast at the Speedway, nearly winning on debut back in 2006. He should be among the contenders on Sunday.

7. Tony Kanaan (Chip Ganassi Racing – Honda)
TK’s victory in the 2013 Indianapolis 500 was one of the most popular in recent history, and the affable Brazilian remains a fan favourite at the Speedway – not to mention a contender, driving for Chip Ganassi. While not displaying the same outright speed as his teammate Dixon did in qualifying, Kanaan knows how to get it done around the IMS, and a second victory would bring the house down.

6. JR Hildebrand (Ed Carpenter Racing – Chevrolet)
The Californian had the race won in 2011 but crashed on the final corner of the final lap, handing an unlikely victory to Dan Wheldon. It was as heartbreaking a loss as we’ve ever seen at Indy. So Hildebrand has unfinished business – and, let’s be honest here, the Speedway owes him one. Like teammate and owner Ed Carpenter, he’s been fast all month and is as good an oval racer as there is in the world. When he finishes at Indy, he invariably finishes at the pointy end.

5. Fernando Alonso (Andretti Autosport – Honda)
Fernando Alonso’s not just the biggest story of the 101st Indianapolis 500, he’s the biggest story in global motorsport this year. The two-time Formula One world champion comes in as perhaps the most credentialled Indy rookie we’ve ever seen, and there’s nothing that suggests Alonso can’t win the race. His acclimation to the art of oval racing has been both rapid and impressive. He’s here to win, and he most certainly can.

4. Takuma Sato (Andretti Autosport – Honda)
Sato is a somewhat erratic racer – he has a win it or bin it attitude – but he’s been very good at Indianapolis over his IndyCar career and was perhaps the highlight of fast nine qualifying, almost swiping the wall multiple times. It’s hard to know exactly what you’ll get with Taku, but if he’s on his game, he’s a chance to drive to victory lane.

3. Alexander Rossi (Andretti Autosport – Honda)
For a time the defending Indianapolis 500 winner was on pole, but when fast nine qualifying ended Rossi was relegated to starting on the outside of the front row. A year ago he snuck up on everyone to win the 100th running by using remarkable strategy and the ability to save fuel like it was going out of fashion, but this year Rossi’s been at or near the top of the charts all month. He is a serious threat to win it on speed and speed alone in 2017.

2. Ed Carpenter (Ed Carpenter Racing – Chevrolet)
In a month that’s been dominated by Honda, Ed Carpenter’s team has stood out as the best of the Chevrolet bunch. The local boy, a two-time Indy 500 pole-sitter, was fastest on Saturday but couldn’t best Dixon’s incredible effort in Sunday’s fast nine qualifying. Still, starting middle of the front row isn’t the worst thing in the world, and Carpenter is as savvy a guy as there is when it comes to getting around Indianapolis, and he’s among the favourites for Sunday.

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1. Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing – Honda)
The Iceman from New Zealand wowed us all with the fastest four-lap qualifying run in more than twenty years. It was a scintillating few moments that no one who witnessed it will forget. As much of a threat as Dixon, who was actually born in Queensland, has always been at Indianapolis, it’s amazing to think that he’s only won one race. Sunday might change that. Dixon will be very tough to beat.

Join The Roar for live coverage and analysis of the 101st Indianapolis 500 from 2:00am AEST on Monday, 29 May.

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