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Indy 500 red flag update: Big weather warning at IMS; quick change in leaderboard
Indianapolis 500 was temporarily red-flagged after rain finally arrived at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis 500 was temporarily red-flagged after rain finally arrived at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. At the time of writing this story, Scott Dixon led the leaderboard. The weather caution first came out after Will Power suffered a gearbox failure and spun into the Turn 1 pit-exit lane, triggering a yellow flag and a critical round of pit stops.
During those stops, Dixon emerged ahead of teammate Alex Palou as teams scrambled to react before weather conditions worsened.
Shortly afterward, light rain and drizzle reached the speedway, forcing race officials to red-flag the event after 106 laps.
Because the field had already completed more than 101 laps, the race had officially reached the distance required to count as a completed Indy 500 if weather prevented a restart.
Quick restart after weather delay
The stoppage ultimately lasted only nine minutes. The red flag began at 4:26 PM local time before engines were refired at 4:35 PM. The race resumed after four additional caution laps, leaving roughly 90 laps remaining in the 200-lap event.
Had the race been called permanently, Dixon would have secured his second Indy 500 victory - 18 years after winning the race for the first time in 2008.
Indy 500 leaderboard under the red flag
Here was the running order when the race was stopped:
Scott Dixon
Alex Palou
David Malukas
Josef Newgarden
Scott McLaughlin
Pato O’Ward
Felix Rosenqvist
Marcus Ericsson
Conor Daly
Marcus Armstrong
Further back in the field were drivers including Helio Castroneves, Takuma Sato and Romain Grosjean.
Several drivers were already out of the race before the rain delay, including Alexander Rossi, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Will Power.
How IMS dries the track after rain
Drying the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway requires a massive operation involving trucks and high-powered track dryers constantly circling the circuit.
The process can take around 90 minutes if sunshine appears quickly and humidity drops. But if cloudy and humid conditions remain, drying time can stretch to several hours.
Indy 500 weather history
Weather has impacted the Indy 500 numerous times throughout its history, with races shortened or postponed on 12 occasions.
Some of the most notable rain-affected editions include:
2007: Dario Franchitti won after 160 laps
1997: Arie Luyendyk claimed victory after the race was completed across three days
1986: Bobby Rahal won after delays pushed the race nearly a week back
1973: Gordon Johncock won a race interrupted by weather on three straight days
