The Indianapolis 500

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Indy 500 live updates: Alex Palou, Rinus VeeKay trade lead; Scott Dixon struggles early​

he IndyCar world turns its attention to Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday with the Indianapolis 500, where 33 drivers will compete to win the 107th edition of the race.

Chip Ganassi Racing driver Alex Palou, who won the pole, and Rinus VeeKay, who started second, traded the lead through the first 30 laps with Palou leading 18 and VeeKay leading 11.

Meanwhile, six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, Palou's Ganassi teammate, was forced to pit early with a tire vibration, which he called "massive." Dixon pulled down pit lane on Lap 27, about five laps earlier than he had planned, after plummeting from the top four to outside the top 15.

Palou came in for fresh tires on Lap 30, while VeeKay stayed out three extra laps, pitting on Lap 33.

A challenging week for Graham Rahal took another turn​

Graham Rahal, who was originally bumped from the field driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing but then took over for Dreyer and Reinbold/Cusick Motorsports driver Stefan Wilson, had his No. 24 Chevrolet have a malfunction at the very start of the Indy 500. His crew worked furiously to repair the issue as the other drivers made their way around the track just before the start of the race. NBC’s broadcast later reported that it was a dead battery.

This is the first time in his career that Rahal is driving a Chevrolet; he normally drives a Honda but had to make the switch when he replaced Wilson, who was injured in a crash with RLL driver Katherine Legge, on Monday.

Rahal’s crew eventually sorted the issue and he got back on the track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but lost two laps.

 

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Row 1

1. 10) Alex Palou, Honda, Ganassi, 234.217 mph

2. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 234.211

3. (6) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 234.114

Row 2

4. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, Foyt, 233.661

5. (5) Pato O'Ward, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.158

6. (9) Scott Dixon (W), Honda, Ganassi, 233.151

Row 3

7. (7) Alexander Rossi (W), Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.110

8. (11) Takuma Sato (W), Honda, Ganassi, 233.098

9. (66) Tony Kanaan (W), Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.076

Row 4

10. (8) Marcus Ericsson (W), Honda, Ganassi, 232.889

11. (55) Benjamin Pedersen (R), Chevrolet, Foyt, 232.671

12. (12) Will Power (W), Chevrolet, Penske, 232.635

Row 5

13. (33) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 232.689

14. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, Penske, 232.677

15. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, Andretti, 232.662

Row 6

16. (20) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 232.433

17. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, Penske, 232.402

18. (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Chevrolet, Dreyer & Reinbold, 232.133

Row 7

19. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, Andretti, 231.997

20. (06) Helio Castroneves (W), Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.954

21. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, Andretti, 231.951

Row 8

22. (60) Simon Pagenaud (W), Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.878

23. (18) David Malukas, Honda, Coyne, 231.769

24. (98) Marco Andretti, Honda, Andretti, 231.682

Row 9

25. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, Andretti, 231.353

26. (78) Agustin Canapino (R), Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, 231.320

27. (77) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, 231.182

Row 10

28. (50) R.C. Enerson (R), Chevrolet, Abel, 231.129

29. (44) Katherine Legge, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 231.070

30. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 229.649

Row 11

31. (51) Sting Ray Robb (R), Honda, Coyne, 229.549

32. (30) Jack Harvey, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 229.166

33. (24) Graham Rahal, Chevrolet, Dreyer & Reinbold, no speed. Rahal is replacing Stefan Wilson, who had qualified 25th but suffered a fractured vertebrae in a post-qualifying crash.

 

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Indy 500 fans slam Jewel for 'extremely disrespectful' national anthem​

Fans at the Indianapolis 500 may have thought singer-songwriter Jewel's version of the national anthem was a little tone deaf. Instead of doing a by-the-book rendition of 'The Star-Spangled Banner,' the Alaska-raised Folk artist, 49, put together a more nuanced version of the anthem. On a stage as big as 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,' the four-time Grammy-nominated artist put together a soulful version of the 200+ year-old song.

It was similar in style and tone to the national anthem she sang at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game in Utah, where she was born. While it wasn't a complete departure from the notes as other versions had, nor was it a horribly sung version, some on social media objected to this rendition of the song. The songstress sported an all-white outfit for the occasion, looking chic in a bodysuit and a white button-up jacket worn over it.

On Twitter, the version of the anthem sung generated a lot of reactions - with the general consensus being mixed. That being said, there were plenty of Twitter users upset at the sound of the song. 'She did a great job butchering the National Anthem and even kept her hat on - wow,' one person Tweeted.

Another said, 'You're given the honor of singing the National Anthem at the biggest spectacle in racing, and you decide to rewrite the music? I'm all for being creative and putting your own "personal" touch to it, but that was way too much!'

'This is the perfect example of how not to do the national anthem,' yet another person wrote. 'It was to the point of being disrespectful.'

There were also plenty of people defending the performance for numerous reasons. One user thought that the performance was 'out of place,' but said, 'I'm a traditionalist who believes that our National Anthem should always be sung in its original form. However, the rendition that @jeweljk delivered was unique and sounded nice.'

A different Twitter user thought the version matched the tone of Memorial Day, saying 'Wow, people online really can find anything to be offended about. Thought that was a nice rendition and wish everyone a happy Memorial Day weekend, as we remember and honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice to preserve the freedom we are blessed with.' Read the full story: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-12134391/Indy-500-fans-SLAM-Jewel-extremely-disrespectful-rendition-national-anthem-race.html?ito=msngallery

 

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