2011 Indianapolis 500

The 95th Indianapolis 500 was held on May 29, 2011 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It was the premier event of the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series season. The track opened for practice on May 14, and time trials were held on May 21–22. The race was won by Dan Wheldon (his second after a previous win in 2005). American rookie J. R. Hildebrand was leading the race when he hit the wall on the final turn of the final lap. As Hildebrand's wrecked car was sliding down the main stretch, Wheldon slipped by in the final 1,000 feet to take the victory. Hildebrand slid across the line to place second.

The race was the third of the three-year long Centennial era, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opening of the track (1909) and 100th anniversary of the first Indianapolis 500 (1911). The race was suspended during WWI (1917–18) and WWII (1942–45), therefore the 100th running of the event will not occur until 2016. At times during the month of May, the race was advertised as the 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500 and the Centennial Indianapolis 500.

The race has been billed as "The Most Important Race in History." It was the final Indy 500 contested with the current normally aspirated "spec" Dallara IR-05/Honda Indy V-8 machines. In 2012, the series will switch to a new chassis and utilize turbocharged engines.


 * Note: Unofficially Oriol Servià finished 5th, 8.8757 seconds behind the leader, with Scott Dixon placing 6th. When the official results were posted, it was determined that Servia passed Dixon on the final lap while the yellow caution light was illuminated. Officials re-instated Dixon to 5th, and dropped Servia to 6th in the final standings.
 * Note: After qualifying had concluded, Bruno Junqueira was replaced by Ryan Hunter-Reay, who did not qualify for the 500. Junqueira received full qualifying points for a 19th place qualification.