I’ve been asking questions of first time Indy 500 viewers these past few days, and one of the big questions has been: why are there 33 cars? And I’ll be honest: for a long time I did not know, I just kicked it off as the kind of random tradition that tends to come together with the 500 (you know, that “we did this one way 50 years ago and now we have never done anything else “) – and although, yes, it is somewhat random in modern times, there is actually a reason for the 33 car field.
The first race in 1911 saw 40 participants, but it looked like it might be a few too many. That said, the AAA Contest Board – which once sanctioned the race – came up with a fine little formula to determine the safest way to host the race. At the time, it was decided that each car would have to cover all 400 feet by itself. On an oval track 2.5 miles like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, that means that could only be 33 cars on schedule.
However, if you look at the entry lists, you will not be told. The then president of the Speedway, Carl Fisher, limited the number of competing cars until 30 to 1915. And there were later exceptions, such as races where 33 cars were not introduced or, during the Great Depression, where 40-42 cars were allowed to compete in the race for four years to promote more economic prosperity.
Since 1934, however, the maximum has been closed on 33 cars, with the exception of the split years of the USAC-CART, where CART cars received a special fifth qualifying day, in which only two cars were fast enough to make the field , thus expanding the start-up network to a grid of 35 cars.
A similar situation was implemented in 1997, where the top 25 drivers from the Indy Racing League were guaranteed a place on the starting grid, and where two “blunt” cars were returned to the starting grid for, again, 35 starters .
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(And, if you do not know what ‘bump’ means, it’s pretty simple. Qualification determines not only where cars start, but which cars are not fast enough to not be included in it. If you have the 34th car are on the timing sheets, you will be bumped.)
So, there you have it. If someone asks you about the nature of the 33 car grid, you will get the answer.
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