2000 Indianapolis 500

2000 Indianapolis 500

The 84th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 28, 2000. After four years of an ongoing organizational dispute and "split" in Indy car racing, Chip Ganassi Racing, a CART-based team, crossed the "picket line" to compete in the Indianapolis 500 which was sanctioned by the rival IRL. The Ganassi team of Jimmy Vasser and Juan Pablo Montoya were welcomed with incident, and quickly were up to speed with the IRL regulars. Also making a heralded return to Indy was two-time winner Al Unser, Jr.

During qualifying, defending IRL champion Greg Ray took the pole position. However, on race day, reigning CART champion Juan Pablo Montoya dominated the race. Montoya led 167 laps, and cruised to victory, becoming the first rookie winner since Graham Hill in 1966.

The 2000 race was the first to feature two female starters in the field, Lyn St. James and Sarah Fisher. The start of the race was delayed over three hours due to rain. The green flag dropped at 2:10 p.m. EST, and the race was completed shortly after 5 p.m. Seven minutes after the checkered flag, the rain returned, and doused the victory lane celebration.

The first 65 laps of the race were run under green flag conditions, a new Indy 500 record. Montoya became only the fourth winner to complete the race in under three hours, and at 167.607 mph, it was the fastest Indy 500 since 1991.

The race was sanctioned by the Indy Racing League, and was part of the 2000 Indy Racing Northern Lights Series season.