Ryan Hunter Reay back in the 500

[VaDirt]

It's happened again, someone getting bumped out of the Indy 500 hours after the final gun sounded on bump day.

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/indycar-junqueira-out-hunter-reay-in-at-indy/

 

[SlowNeasy]

damn i understand the what and how of it but it still sucks for bruno.

 

[wilson89]

Thats pretty low down especialy for Foyt

 

[Clutch]

We might understand......but it really is below the belt

 

[Magnethead]

It's low, but like the article said, if the sponsor wants you in, they will buy you in.

I just hope that maybe, the favor will be returned, and Andretti will fund Junq for another race, even though it probably won't happen.

Why is the 500 a capped field, anyways? None of the other races are, that i know of. I say let whoever can run within 10mph of the polesitter or so (to keep out the Milka Duno types) should run the race. The track is mor than big enough for more than 33 cars.

 

[Mopardh9]

It's low, but like the article said, if the sponsor wants you in, they will buy you in.

I just hope that maybe, the favor will be returned, and Andretti will fund Junq for another race, even though it probably won't happen.

Why is the 500 a capped field, anyways? None of the other races are, that i know of. I say let whoever can run within 10mph of the polesitter or so (to keep out the Milka Duno types) should run the race. The track is mor than big enough for more than 33 cars.

I could never understand that either, guess it has to do with the mystique of Indy and tradition?

 

[SlowNeasy]

http://indymotorspeedway.com/500faq.htm#size

Have there always been 33 cars in the starting field of the Indianapolis 500?

No. After 40 cars started in the inaugural race in 1911, the Contest Board of the American Automobile Association (AAA), the sanctioning body at the time, mandated a formula for limiting the size of a starting field according to the size of the track. It was determined that the safe distance between each car spread equally around a course would be 400 feet, thereby limiting the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway to 33 cars. Speedway President Carl Fisher, however, placed a limit of only 30 cars for the "500" between 1912 and 1914 and did not adopt AAA's 33 maximum until 1915. Although there had been numerous occasions between 1912 and 1928 when the field was not filled, the allowed number was increased during the Depression years to 40 cars between 1930 and 1932 (only 38 made it in 1930) and further to 42 in 1933. The maximum has been at 33 ever since 1934, although extenuating circumstances expanded the field to 35 starters in 1979 and 1997.