Indianapolis 500 Gets Underway After 4 Hour Delay

AFP/APP

Washington:The start of the Indianapolis 500 was delayed by four hours due to heavy rain before the 108th edition finally got under way on Sunday.

The green flag was due at 12:45 pm ET but with the forecast weather, including lightning, organizers made the decision to delay.

A crowd of 125,000 was ordered out of the grandstands at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to take shelter before the 108th running of the race.

New Zealand’s Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske started on pole position and there was a crash on the opening lap.

Rookie Tom Blomqvist span out of control and hit Marcus Ericsson, the 2022 Indy 500 winner and Pietro Fittipaldi.

Organizers said the race would end at 8:15 (0015 gmt) even if the 200 laps were not complete “in agreement with local law enforcement to ensure race fans can leave and return home safely”.