Indy 500 Review 2022

The 106th Indianapolis was won by Marcus Ericsson driving for Chip Ganassi racing, who faced a late challenge from McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, finishing 2nd.  The ageless Tony Kanaan rounded out the top three, also running for Chip Ganassi Racing.  Pole sitter and race pace setter Scott Dixon’s race came off the rails after being penalised for a pit speed violation on his last pitstop.

The 2022 race marked the 22nd consecutive victory for an Xtrac customer, the tenth for the P1011 transmission, which has been the sole supply gearbox to the series since 2000 and Xtrac’s 29th win since the company was found in 1984.  Qualifying speeds were just shy of the all-time qualification record, but Scott Dixon set a record for the fastest pole time with a speed of 234.06 mph.  This eclipsed the previous pole record, of 233.718 held by the late Scott Brayton set in 1996 but just shy of the 1996 second day qualifying record run of 236.986 mph set by Arie Luyendyk in a Reynard which was equipped with an Xtrac transmission.

During practice, qualifying and the race, with some drivers shifting gears 4-6 times/lap, total transmission reliability was maintained with zero transmission issues reported.  With a track support office located within the massive Indianapolis Motor Speedway, teams had immediate access to parts and engineering support.  As the engine manufactures work to increase performance with shift strategies, top speed and fuel consumption, specific settings for the Gearbox Control Unit (GCU) are needed for the oval, requiring 54 units to be reprogrammed trackside, with all returning to their road course specifications prior to the road course race in Detroit.

Xtrac is proud of its long running association with American racing series and continues developments, preparing for future IndyCar transmissions which are planned to be introduced prior to the start of the 2024 IndyCar season.  With Memorial Day being a cherished American holiday, over the Memorial Day weekend Xtrac supported two major American racing series with a total of 70 cars racing with Xtrac transmissions; the 33 IndyCars competing at the Indianapolis 500 and 37 NextGen NASCARs at the 62nd running of NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte held on the same day in the evening.