INDIANAPOLIS – When it comes to best drivers in the Indianapolis 500 field that excel at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but have never won the race, Ed Carpenter’s name has to be close to the top of that list.
Although he grew up in Marshall, Illinois, across the state line from Terre Haute, Indiana, Carpenter has become the “Hometown Hero” at the Indianapolis 500. He was part of the family that owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar, but Carpenter had earned his position on the race track.
Carpenter has won three Indy 500 poles in his career.
“I want to see a first-time winner, obviously,” Carpenter said. “There is a time to be happy for people still competing, but in the moment, I was not happy to see Helio Castroneves win, I would have been just as upset if Alex Palou won, or Simon Pagenaud or Pato O’Ward, all of the guys in front of me.
“As time goes on, I’ll have different feelings about what new history is made, but right now, I’m living in the moment.”
The graduate of Butler University in Indianapolis is very active in the community. The 41-year-old has created a very successful three-driver NTT IndyCar Series team, that includes 21-year-old rookie driver Rinus VeeKay of The Netherlands and fellow Hoosier Conor Daly of Noblesville, Indiana.
Hard to believe, but Carpenter will be starting in his 19th Indianapolis 500 on Sunday. He had another great qualification effort last Sunday and his fourth-lap average of 233.080 miles per hour puts him fourth on the grid, the inside of row 2 behind pole winner Scott Dixon.
With three Indy 500 poles, Carpenter has led 146 laps.
He led 37 laps in 2013 after starting from the pole but finished 10th. The next year, Carpenter started on the pole again and was probably the best driver in the race at the time he was involved in a crash with James Hinchcliffe on lap 175. Instead of victory, he finished 27th.
“In 2014, we were really strong that day,” Carpenter said. “That one still hurts.”
In 2018, he started on the pole and battled with Team Penske driver Will Power for most of the race. Carpenter led 65 laps, but at the end, Power’s Chevrolet was just a bit better than Carpenter’s Chevy and he finished second, just 3.159-seconds behind Power’s No. 12 Chevy.
“It’s hard finishing second here,” Carpenter said. “It’s the worst place to be. You can go back and analyze a race like that and there are quite a few places I could have made up the difference.
“The race plays itself out. The last pit cycle, I could have done more on an in- and out-lap or caught different traffic than he did. But that’s why you run the race.
“It was a good battle between the two of us. Whoever came out leading going into that last stint was likely going to be the winner. We did everything we could to chase him down, it just wasn’t enough.”
Carpenter can feel a sense of pride that for the past three years, Ed Carpenter Racing has been the fastest Chevrolet team at the Indianapolis 500.
“It’s a huge source of pride for the team that we want to be on top,” Carpenter said. “To be the fastest running Chevy now for the last three years is something I’m very proud of for the people on the team that have put so much work in to have fast cars and be fighting for poles and race wins.
“Just because you are successful one year doesn’t guarantee success the next. Just because you had a bad year one year, doesn’t mean you are doomed for another bad year. For us as a team, we take what we can learn from an event, positive and negative and try to get better. You have to put in the same work over and over again. You add more layers to that to be thorough and prepared.
“You have to get stronger while other teams are getting stronger, too. It’s a never-ending push to try and improve.”
Carpenter has created his own unique place in the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but more than anything, he would love to add his name to the list of Indianapolis 500 winners.
Through his career, though, the quiet man who became the “Hometown Hero” has created something he can be proud of.
“It’s what I’ve always wanted, to win this race,” Carpenter said. “The want never goes away. When I was younger, I always wondered what may career would look like whether I won this race or not. I don’t really care about that aspect of it any more. I just want to win this race for myself, my family, and my team.
“I do this for me and my family so it will be extremely gratifying for us if I win. There is no one in my life that understands how much I put into this other than them. Now that my kids are older, they see this process more.
“It’s fun to have them on this journey with me now.”