Crews To Enter Spotlight in Oscar Mayer $150,000 Pit Stop Challenge

Fourteen drivers set to compete in the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge this Sunday will square off Friday in the Oscar Mayer $150,000 Pit Stop Challenge at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The annual tradition on Miller Lite Carb Day features head-to-head competition between pit crews and will take place at 2:30 p.m. ET in front of the iconic main straightaway grandstands. The action airs live on FS1 and the FOX Sports app.

SEE: Bracket

The winning crew will earn $50,000, with $25,000 going to the runner-up.

Josef Newgarden and his Team Penske crew won last year’s Pit Stop Challenge before capturing the “500” for the second consecutive year. Newgarden also drove the winning Pit Stop Challenge car in 2022, and Team Penske has won the Pit Stop Challenge a record 19 times.

Newgarden is one of seven drivers to have won the Pit Stop Challenge and the “500” in the same year. Newgarden and Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward are the only pair of drivers to finish first and second in the two marquee events in the same year, last May.

Two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Newgarden will begin this bracket format against second-year Ed Carpenter Racing driver Christian Rasmussen. O’Ward and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, a four-time winner of the Pit Stop Challenge, will have first-round byes.

Other first-round matchups include Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Conor Daly of Juncos Hollinger Racing, Colton Herta of Andretti Global w/Curb-Agajanian and rookie Nolan Siegel of Arrow McLaren, Rinus VeeKay of Dale Coyne Racing and NTT INDYCAR SERIES points leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, rookie Louis Foster of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Ed Carpenter Racing’s Alexander Rossi, and Will Power of Team Penske and Christian Lundgaard of Arrow McLaren.

The first driver listed in these pairings receives lane choice in the first round. Quicker previous round time determines lane choice in subsequent rounds. Rasmussen will have lane choice against Newgarden; O’Ward and Dixon will have lane choice in their second-round matchups.

The final round is a best-of-three competition, with lane choice for the first run determined by the car with the quicker run in the previous round. Cars swap lanes for the second run.

During each round, crews will simulate a fuel hookup and change all four Firestone Firehawk ties.

The Pit Stop Challenge was first held in 1977, with Jim McElreath beating Wally Dallenbach in the finals.

Miller Lite Carb Day festivities include a two-hour practice for all 33 cars beginning at 11 a.m. ET on FS1, the FOX Sports app and the INDYCAR Radio Network. Public gates open at 8 a.m.

The Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is Sunday (10 a.m., FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).