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Chevy Racing–INDYCAR–media day–Rinus VeeKay

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CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval Speedway, Indiana Media Day May 21, 2026
Row 4 – Rinus VeeKay

THE MODERATOR: Starting 11th, wasn’t that long ago when he set the record for the highest starting spot by a teenager when he started fourth in 2020,  Rinus VeeKay. THE MODERATOR: How much are you looking forward to a couple hours of race time tomorrow?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, that will be nice. Hopefully we can get something in, even with, like, the shorter practice day on Monday, it’s just nice to kind of shake that qualifying weekend off and get into race running.The conditions are consistently changing as well. It will be nice to get a bit more race running in. Would have loved to do a little bit more during last week. Looking at the weather now, we should be good for at least one or two hours. I’m excited. Q. How important is it to have the trust of the drivers in front of you and behind you at the start the race?RINUS VEEKAY: I mean, it’s nice knowing how the Indy 500 has been at least from my previous six starts. Everybody knows the race isn’t won in the first lap, the first corner. You see a big difference compared to road courses, street courses, even short oval races, because everybody knows it’s 500 miles.It is nice. It’s just important knowing there’s one less variable that you don’t have to watch your mirrors every time. Like Scott said, most important just to stay out of trouble. That’s rule number one around the Speedway. Q. Rinus, you look at your history in this race, you usually qualify pretty well, but drop positions throughout the race. What do you feel you’ve learned to gain positions going into this year?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, I mean, this has always been one of those races that you have to win, right? My first five shots at it, discounting last year, I had one of the fastest cars with Ed Carpenter Racing at the time. I always felt like this is a place we had to win where we had the car. I put a lot of pressure on myself.I had this expectation on myself that I’ve got the car, now I’ve got to win the race. And then it’s places, even off track, like coming into pit lane, where I get greedy. There’s things that happen that you shouldn’t be too greedy in pit lane. It’s a straightforward thing.The 500 last year we didn’t have the pace. We had to work in a different way to find pace and make passes happen.I’m super relaxed this year. I don’t feel like I’m expecting anything from myself except maximizing everything I do inside and outside the car, just like the other 17 races we do this year.I want to have a shot at fighting in the top five. If I maximize, I’m confident I can do that, the team can do that. They’re really fast in pit lane. At that point the Speedway decides what happens. Maybe we do finish fifth, maybe we have a battle at going for the win.Yeah, as long as I can just decide my own fate and stay clean, have a good race, race hard, and build up this race toward the last 50 laps, that’s going to be my goal.I learned earlier this year, in Phoenix, there’s some moves you shouldn’t make, some things you shouldn’t make that early in the race to stay in contention.
Indianapolis 500 Monday Practice Results
CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway ovalSpeedway, IndianaMedia DayMay 21, 2026
Row 4 – Rinus VeeKay

THE MODERATOR: Starting 11th, wasn’t that long ago when he set the record for the highest starting spot by a teenager when he started fourth in 2020,  Rinus VeeKay. THE MODERATOR: How much are you looking forward to a couple hours of race time tomorrow?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, that will be nice. Hopefully we can get something in, even with, like, the shorter practice day on Monday, it’s just nice to kind of shake that qualifying weekend off and get into race running.The conditions are consistently changing as well. It will be nice to get a bit more race running in. Would have loved to do a little bit more during last week. Looking at the weather now, we should be good for at least one or two hours. I’m excited. Q. How important is it to have the trust of the drivers in front of you and behind you at the start the race?RINUS VEEKAY: I mean, it’s nice knowing how the Indy 500 has been at least from my previous six starts. Everybody knows the race isn’t won in the first lap, the first corner. You see a big difference compared to road courses, street courses, even short oval races, because everybody knows it’s 500 miles.It is nice. It’s just important knowing there’s one less variable that you don’t have to watch your mirrors every time. Like Scott said, most important just to stay out of trouble. That’s rule number one around the Speedway. Q. Rinus, you look at your history in this race, you usually qualify pretty well, but drop positions throughout the race. What do you feel you’ve learned to gain positions going into this year?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, I mean, this has always been one of those races that you have to win, right? My first five shots at it, discounting last year, I had one of the fastest cars with Ed Carpenter Racing at the time. I always felt like this is a place we had to win where we had the car. I put a lot of pressure on myself.I had this expectation on myself that I’ve got the car, now I’ve got to win the race. And then it’s places, even off track, like coming into pit lane, where I get greedy. There’s things that happen that you shouldn’t be too greedy in pit lane. It’s a straightforward thing.The 500 last year we didn’t have the pace. We had to work in a different way to find pace and make passes happen.I’m super relaxed this year. I don’t feel like I’m expecting anything from myself except maximizing everything I do inside and outside the car, just like the other 17 races we do this year.I want to have a shot at fighting in the top five. If I maximize, I’m confident I can do that, the team can do that. They’re really fast in pit lane. At that point the Speedway decides what happens. Maybe we do finish fifth, maybe we have a battle at going for the win.Yeah, as long as I can just decide my own fate and stay clean, have a good race, race hard, and build up this race toward the last 50 laps, that’s going to be my goal.I learned earlier this year, in Phoenix, there’s some moves you shouldn’t make, some things you shouldn’t make that early in the race to stay in contention.
Indianapolis 500 Monday Practice Results
Chevrolet History at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval General Motors Wins – 18 Chevrolet Wins – 13 2024 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske2023 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske2019 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske2018 – Will Power – Team Penske2015 – Juan Montoya – Team Penske2013 – Tony Kanaan – KV Racing Technology-SH Racing2002 – Helio Castroneves – Team Penske1993 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske1992 – Al Unser, Jr. – Galles/Kraco1991 – Rick Mears – Team Penske1990 – Arie Luyendyk – Doug Shierson Racing1989 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Patrick Racing1988 – Rick Mears – Team Penske Oldsmobile Wins – 5  2001 – Helio Castroneves – Team Penske2000 – Juan Montoya – Chip Ganassi Racing1999 – Kenny Brack – A.J. Foyt Racing1998 – Eddie Cheever, Jr. – Team Cheever1997 – Arie Luyendyk – Treadway Racing General Motors Poles – 20 Chevrolet Poles – 14 2025 – Robert Shwartzman – PREMA Racing2024 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske2019 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske2018 – Ed Carpenter – Ed Carpenter Racing2015 – Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing2014 – Ed Carpenter – Ed Carpenter Racing2013 – Ed Carpenter – Ed Carpenter Racing2012 – Ryan Briscoe – Team Penske2002 – Bruno Junqueira – Chip Ganassi Racing1991 – Rick Mears – Team Penske1990 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske1989 – Rick Mears – Team Penske1988 – Rick Mears – Team Penske1987 – Mario Andretti – Newman Haas Racing Oldsmobile Poles – 5 2001 – Scott Sharp – Kelley Racing2000 – Greg Ray – Team Menard1999 – Arie Luyendyk – Treadway Racing1998 – Billy Boat – A.J. Foyt Racing1997 – Arie Luyendyk – Treadway Racing Buick Poles – 1 1992 – Roberto Guerrero – King Motorsports General Motors Podiums – 54 Chevrolet Podiums – 38 Chevrolet Driver Podiums – Emerson Fittipaldi (4), Helio Castroneves (3), Josef Newgarden (3), Pato O’Ward (3), Tony Kanaan (2), Arie Luyendyk (2), Rick Mears (2), Simon Pagenaud (2), Will Power (2), Al Unser Jr. (2), Michael Andretti (1), Ed Carpenter (1), Santino Ferrucci (1),Felipe Giaffone (1), Scott Goodyear (1), Ryan Hunter-Reay (1), Charlie Kimball (1), David Malukas (1), Juan Montoya (1), Carlos Munoz (1), Bob Rahal (1), Paul Tracy (1), Al Unser (1) Chevrolet Team Podiums –  Team Penske (15), Arrow McLaren (3), A.J. Foyt Racing (2), Andretti Global (2), ECR (2), Galles Racing (2), KV Racing Technology (2), Patrick Racing (2), Chip Ganassi Racing (1), Doug Shierson Racing (1), Granatelli Racing (1), Kraco Enterprises (1), Mo Nunn Racing (1), Newman Haas Racing (1), Team Green (1), Walker Racing (1) Oldsmobile – 15  Oldsmobile Driver Podiums – Buddy Lazier (2), Jeff Ward (2), Michael Andretti (1), Billy Boat (1), Kenny Brack (1), Helio Castroneves (1), Eddie Cheever, Jr. (1), Gil de Ferran (1), Scott Goodyear (1), Steve Knapp (1), Arie Luyendyk (1), Juan Montoya (1), Eliseo Salazar (1) Oldsmobile Team Podiums – A.J. Foyt (3), Hemelgarn Racing (2), Team Cheever (2), Team Penske (2), Treadway Racing (2), Chip Ganassi Racing (1), ISM Racing (1), Team Green (1), Pagan Racing (1) Buick – 1 Buick Driver Podiums – Al Unser (1) Buick Team Podiums – Team Menard (1) General Motors Laps Led – 3709 Chevrolet Laps Led – 2699 Chevrolet Driver Laps Led – Emerson Fittipaldi (348), Mario Andretti (193), Simon Pagenaud (169), Ed Carpenter (144), Will Power (140), Tony Kanaan (133), Michael Andretti (132), Rick Mears (119), Helio Castroneves (98), Pato O’Ward (96), Danny Sullivan (95), Marco Andretti (90), Scott Dixon (87), Conor Daly (82), Josef Newgarden (69), Rinus VeeKay (65), Scott McLaughlin (64), Al Unser Jr. (52), Felix Rosenqvist (47), Arie Luyendyk (37), Bob Rahal (36), Bruno Junqueira (32), Alexander Rossi (30), Al Unser (27), Juan Montoya (26), A.J. Allmendinger (23), Sting Ray Robb (23), Ryan Briscoe (15), Gil de Ferran (13), Santino Ferrucci (12), Felipe Giaffone (12), James Hinchcliffe (12), Carlos Munoz (12), Alex Barron (10), Charlie Kimball (10), Christian Rasmussen (9), Robert Shwartzman (8), Spencer Pigot (7), JR Hildebrand (6), Callum Ilott (6), Oliver Askew (4), Kevin Cogan (4), Sage Karam (4), Kyle Larson (4), Jack Harvey (3), Scott Sharp (3), Rubens Barrichello (2), David Malukas (2) Chevrolet Team Laps Led – Team Penske (1019), Newman Haas Racing (325), ECR (306), Chip Ganassi Racing (179), Arrow McLaren (168), Patrick Racing (158), Andretti Global (140), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing (85), A.J. Foyt Racing (56), Galles Racing (56), KV Racing Technology (43), Doug Shierson Racing (37), Kraco Enterprises (35), Mo Nunn Racing (35), Juncos Hollinger Racing (18), King Motorsports (15), Prema Racing (8), Blair Racing (7), Kelley Racing (4), Team Cheever (3) Oldsmobile Laps Led – 996 Oldsmobile Driver Laps Led: Juan Montoya (167), Arie Luyendyk (129), Greg Ray (116), Kenny Brack (89), Tony Stewart (78), Eddie Cheever, Jr. (76), Helio Castroneves (52), Jeff Ward (52), Robby Gordon (50), John Paul, Jr. (39), Mark Dismore (29), Gil de Ferran (27), Buddy Lazier (27), Michael Andretti (16), Robbie Buhl (16), Billy Boat (13), Jimmy Vasser (5), Buzz Calkins (4), Sam Schmidt (4), Davey Hamilton (3), Scott Goodyear (2), Robbie McGehee (2) Oldsmobile Team Laps Led : Team Menard (207), Chip Ganassi Racing (185), Treadway Racing (137), Team Cheever (125), A.J. Foyt Racing (124), Team Penske (79), Team Pelfrey (39), Kelley Racing (29), Hemelgarn Racing (27), Genoa Racing (18), Team Green (16), Bradley Racing (4), Nienhouse Motorsports (3), Pagan Racing (3) Buick Laps Led – 14 Buick Driver Laps Led: Jim Crawford (8), Al Unser (4), Scott Brayton (1), Stephane Gregoire (1) Buick Team Laps Led: King Motorsports (8), Team Menard (4), Brayton Engineering (1), Formula Project (1) Manufacturer History at the Indianapolis 500 Wins (with competition)  27 – Offenhauser (1976, 1975, 1974, 1973, 1972, 1968, 1964, 1963, 1962, 1961, 1960, 1959, 1958, 1957, 1956, 1955, 1954, 1953, 1952, 1951, 1950, 1949, 1948, 1947, 1941, 1937, 1935)18 – General Motors 13 – Chevrolet (2024, 2023, 2019, 2018, 2015, 2013, 2002, 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990, 1989, 1988)12 – Miller (1938, 1936, 1934, 1933, 1932, 1931, 1930, 1929, 1928, 1926, 1923, 1922)10 – Honda (2025, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2017, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2005, 2004)10 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1982, 1981, 1980, 1979, 1978)8 – Ford (1996, 1995, 1971, 1970, 1969, 1967, 1965)5 – Oldsmobile (2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997)3 – Duesenberg (1927, 1925, 19243 – Peugeot (1919, 1918, 1913)2 – Mercedes (1994, 19152 – Maserati (1940, 1939)2 – Frontenac (1921, 1920)1 – Toyota (2003)1 – Foyt (19771 – Sparks (1946)1 – Delage (1914)1 – National (1912)1 – Marmon (1911)  Earned Poles (with competition) 23 – General Motors18 – Offenhauser (1976, 1973, 1972, 1971, 1963, 1962, 1961, 1960, 1959, 1958, 1957, 1956, 1955, 1954, 1953, 1950, 1946, 1937)14 – Miller (1938, 1935, 1934, 1933, 1932, 1930, 1929, 1928, 1927, 1926, 1925, 1924, 1923, 1922)14 – Chevrolet (2025, 2024, 2019, 2018, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2002, 1991, 1990, 1989, 1988, 1987)9 – Cosworth (1986, 1984, 1983, 1982, 1981, 1980, 1979, 1978, 1977)9 – Honda (2026, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2017, 2016, 2005, 2004)7 – Ford (1993, 1970, 1969, 1967, 1966, 1965, 1964)5 – Oldsmobile (2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997)4 – Buick (1996, 1995, 1992, 1985)3 – Ballot (1921, 1920, 1919)2 – Foyt (1975, 1974)2 – Novi (1951, 1949)2 – Winfield (1948, 1940)2 – Maserati (1947, 1941)2 – Sparks (1939, 1936)2 – Wisconsin (1912, 1911)1 – Toyota (2003)1 – Mercedes (1994)1 – Pratt & Whitney (1968)1 – Cummins (1952)1 – Studebaker (1931)1 – Peugeot (1916)1 – Stutz (1915)1 – Sunbeam (1914)1 – Mercer (1913)

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