Four storylines to follow for Sunday's Indianapolis 500

It's not surprising Larson made the field, but qualifying fifth for his IndyCar debut is quite the accomplishment.

An accomplished dirt racer and future NASCAR Hall of Famer, Larson is looking to add an Indianapolis trophy to round out his legendary status as a driver.

Larson has already proved that he's able to juggle the pressure of full-time competition in the NASCAR Cup Series, but the Indianapolis 500 itself is one of the most pressure-packed sporting events in the world. Larson's experience with high-pressure situations in NASCAR — including 11 starts in the Daytona 500 and two appearances in the NASCAR Cup Series championship race — will certainly come in handy for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, who is +700 as of Wednesday to win the Indy 500, per DraftKings.  

If there ever is a driver who can come close to matching the achievements of Indy legends Mario Andretti and A.J. Foyt, it would be Larson, who, at just 31, has at least a decade of racing left to chase trophies. 

Can former winners come from the back of the pack?

Former winners Newgarden, Will Power and Alexander Rossi will start inside the top five, while other former Indy 500 champs will race from deeper in the pack. 

Two-time winner Takuma Sato will start 10th, while 2014 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay will start 12th alongside Sato on row four. Meanwhile, former winners Helio Castroneves (20th), Scott Dixon (21st) and Marcus Ericsson will have catching up to do once the green flag flies, with Ericsson starting 32nd out of 33 cars. 

Indianapolis rookies look to make a splash

While Larson is the obvious rookie to keep an eye on, other rookies in the field are deserving of a mention, too.

Just making the Indianapolis 500 is a huge accomplishment, and there are six drivers, including Larson, who will be making their first start in the 500 on Sunday. 

Apart from Larson, the rookie with the best position on the starting grid will be 23 year-old Marcus Armstrong, who will roll off the grid in 16th. Two-time Rolex 24 at Daytona winner Tom Blomqvist will start 25th, while 2022 Indy NXT champion Linus Lundqvist will start from the 27th starting spot. 

The biggest issue for the Indy 500 rookies will be battling butterflies, but none of the rookies will start farther back than 27th, so they won’t have the worst seat in the house when the green flag flies. 

Larson is likely the rookie with the best shot to win, but if chaos should find its way onto the Indy bricks, don’t be surprised if young stars Kyffin Simpson or Christian Rasmussen are in line for top-10 finishes.

Coverage of the 2024 Indianapolis 500 will begin at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday. Race coverage will air on NBC and Peacock, with the green flag expected to wave just after 12:35 p.m. ET.