Of the 11 rookies who started the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, four hit the wall and another left early with a mechanical problem. So it’s no surprise the six who reached the checkered flag were just happy to get there, no matter where they finished.
That was especially so for the eight drivers—seven of them first-time starters—who took on the challenge of Indianapolis Motor Speedway just three months after transitioning from the Champ Car World Series.
“Just to have both cars finish is good for us. Now we know what we need to work on,” said KV Racing Technology co-owner Jimmy Vasser, an eight-time Indy starter whose drivers, Oriol Servia and Will Power, finished 11th and 13th, respectively.
That was the best of the Champ Car contingent on a day that Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing finished with two wrecked cars, by Graham Rahal on lap 37 and Justin Wilson on lap 133, and Conquest Racing lost one when Jaime Camara crashed on lap 80.
The other rookie to smack the wall was Alex Lloyd, whose car was a joint effort of established IndyCar Series teams Ganassi Racing and Rahal Letterman Racing. Their disappointment was mitigated by Scott Dixon winning the race for Ganassi and Ryan Hunter-Reay placing sixth to earn top rookie honors for Rahal Letterman.
“This is a great finish for us,” said Hunter-Reay, who finished one spot ahead of Andretti Green Racing rookie Hideki Mutoh. “I think the Indy 500 Rookie of the Year battle meant a lot more than it has in a while because the field was so strong with so many former Champ Car drivers coming over.
Enrique Bernoldi had a solid run for Conquest, placing 15th, and Dale Coyne Racing’s Mario Moraes overcame a slight brush with the wall to lead three laps under caution and finish 18th. E.J. Viso of HVM Racing ran well early but faded to 26th with a gearbox problem.
Moraes, 19, became the third-youngest driver to lead a lap, behind only Josele Garza (1981) and Marco Andretti (2006).
“We made what we were looking for: finish the race,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what position.”
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