Indy 500 Odds: The 98th running of the Indianapolis 500 takes place on Sunday, May 25th and can be seen on ABC. The top contenders to win the race are Helio Castroneves, Marco Andretti, Scott Dixon, Juan Montoya and Scott Dixon. Each of those drivers is listed with single-digit Indy 500 odds at the sportsbook. Favorites don’t always win this race so some of the longshots could be worth a look including Grand Prix of Indianapolis winner Simon Pagenaud.
Here is a look at the race and Indy 500 predictions.
Qualifying Changes
It used to be that the front row would be set in one day but in 2014 qualifying will take place over two days. The first day of qualifying will be on Saturday, May 17th. The fastest 33 cars will get into the field but the official order will not be determined until Sunday, May 18th. The fastest nine cars will race in the Fast Nine Shootout. The other 22 cars will also qualify again with their Sunday times deciding the official order.
Top Contenders
If you look at the practice speeds you can get a good idea of which drivers should contend for the win. The top three in the first practice were Will Power, Juan Montoya and Helio Castroneves. The second practice had Ryan Hunter-Reay, Marco Andretti and Castroneves leading the way. The third practice had E.J. Viso, Kurt Busch and Montoya the leaders while Pagenaud led the fourth practice with J.R. Hildebrand and Dixon finishing second and third. “I think we are a championship contender,” Pagenaud said. “It’s fair to say that we are where we want to be, fighting for wins. Being consistent in the championship is what gives you championship wins.”
Indy 500 Predictions
The Indy 500 odds on Pagenaud are likely to drop as the Indy 500 gets closer. You should be able to get him now at double-digit odds but I think he will go off as one of the favorites by the time this race starts. I will take Pagenaud to win the Indy 500.
