They call it the greatest spectacle in racing – in a good year, 400,000 spectators can make the Indianapolis 500 the world’s biggest one-day sporting event. Here are highlights from the day’s action, from sunrise to race end, through the lenses of the IndyCar Series’ team of photographers.
Mike Conway, the British driver airlifted to hospital after a horrific last-lap crash in yesterday’s Indianapolis 500, will miss three months with fractured bones in his back and left leg, according to IndyCar Series medical staff.
Carlin’s Jean-Eric Vergne regained the lead of the British F3 International championship as the series visited Hockenheim, winning both the first and third races with ease from pole.
Scotland’s Dario Franchitti led for most of the Indianapolis 500, but before he could collect the win he had to endure some frantic and confused closing laps during which many drivers ran short of fuel, positions rapidly changed and Mike Conway suffered a ghastly crash.
ART Grand Prix began to pull away at the top of the inaugural GP3 drivers’ and teams’ championships as Esteban Gutierrez won race one at Istanbul Park and Alexander Rossi took a race two podium behind Manor Racing’s Rio Haryanto.
Dani Clos took his turn on the top step of the GP2 podium in Istanbul Park as the series produced its sixth different winner in six races, the Spaniard comfortably beating Luiz Razia after his team-mate Christian Vietoris retired from second.
Pastor Maldonado ran away with the opening GP2 race in Turkey, beating pole-sitter Davide Valsecchi away at the start and comfortably leading home the GP2 Asia champion and ART’s British driver Sam Bird.