Who are the Expected Indy 500 Drivers for the 2021 Season?

2021 will mark the 105th Indianapolis 500, and it’s an IndyCar Series event that is now confirmed to take place on Sunday, May 30, 2021.

The race usually takes about 200 laps that translate to 500 miles that feature 33 drivers.

Last year, Simon Pagenaud of Team Penske won the race, and he is the first confirmed driver at the race since he will be defending his championship.

Also, we have seen the return of Fernando Alonso, a two-time Formula 1 winner who has a great desire to reach the bars set by Graham Hill after he won the Triple Crown.

Alonso has already won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Monaco Grand Prix, and the only race remaining for him to have the Triple Crown is the Indy 500 title win. There are speculations that he is very close to signing with Michael Andretti’s team.

We know it’s too early to be talking about the entry list of drivers at the 2021 Indy 500. However, we have come up with a list of confirmed and speculated drivers.

Here, we will arrange the drivers, depending on the team in which they are in. Note that this is not the final entry list, and for confirmation, you may have to wait until May 2021.

List of confirmed and speculated Indy 500 drivers

Andretti Autosport

• Zach Veach, #26 Honda
• Alexander Rossi, #27 Honda
• Ryan Hunter-Reay, #28 Honda
• Colton Herta, #88 Honda (Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport)
• Marco Andretti, #98 Honda (Andretti Herta Autosport)
• Fernando Alonso (speculated) – He will be looking to join Andretti’s team, and both parties have shown interest. It’s just a matter of time until a deal is put into paper between Alonso and Andretti’s team.

Arrow McLaren SP

• Oliver Askew, #TBD Chevrolet
• Patricio O’Ward, #TBD Chevrolet

Chip Ganassi Racing

• Marcus Ericsson, #8 Honda
• Scott Dixon, #9 Honda
• Felix Rosenqvist, #10 Honda

Ed Carpenter Racing

• Rinus VeeKay, #21 Chevrolet

Meyer Shank Racing

• Jack Harvey, #60 Honda

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

• Graham Rahal, #15 Honda
• Takuma Sato, #30 Honda

Team Penske

• Josef Newgarden, #1 Chevrolet
• Will Power, #12 Chevrolet
• Simon Pagenaud, #22 Chevrolet

Full-time drivers (speculated)

A.J. Foyt Enterprises

• Charlie Kimball, #4 Chevrolet

Dale Coyne Racing

• James Hinchcliffe/Sergio Sette Camara/Alex Palou, #18 Honda
• Santino Ferrucci, #19 Honda

Remaining full-time seats (confirmed)

• Carlin (two seats)
• Dale Coyne Racing (two seats, see above)

Remaining full-time seats (speculated)

• Possible second A.J. Foyt Enterprises entry

Indy 500 one-offs (confirmed)

• Arrow McLaren Racing SP Chevrolet (third entry)
• James Davison in a Jonathan Byrd’s Racing/Hayward Motorsports entry

Indy 500 one-offs (speculated)

• Helio Castroneves in a fourth Team Penske Chevrolet
• Third Dale Coyne Racing Honda
• Sixth Andretti Autosport Honda

Other (confirmed)

• Ed Carpenter is the oval driver for Ed Carpenter Racing and is set to drive in the Indy 500.
• Conor Daly is the road and street course driver for Ed Carpenter Racing but is set to drive a third entry for the team in the Indy 500.

Other (speculated)

• DragonSpeed and Ben Hanley are slated to return to IndyCar in 2020, but it’s just speculation that is yet to be confirmed.
• Tony Kanaan is one of the likely drivers expected to compete at the Indy 500 if A.J. Foyt Enterprises’ second part-time entry ends up being a part-time entry. 

Conclusion

It’s yet unclear about Indy 500 drivers on this year 2021 entry list. We will have to wait for about four months or so until we can have the confirmed drivers of the greatest spectacle in racing.

For you, as a fan, you can prepare yourself by getting your tickets and parking passes early as they sell out fast. If you’re in for a crazy weekend, then you can try camping at the Coke Lot.