2024 IndyCar Series preview: Schedule, key dates, TV info and drivers to watch

Racing season is in full swing.

After NASCAR and Formula One kicked off their respective campaigns, it's time for IndyCar to do the same.

The NTT IndyCar Series begins this weekend with a street race in St. Petersburg, Fla. That event will be the first of 17 races in the 2024 season, a schedule that is highlighted by the Indianapolis 500 in May.

Between driver changes, schedule tweaks and team rebrands, it's sure to be an exciting IndyCar season.

Here's a full preview of everything you need to know about IndyCar in 2024:

What is the IndyCar Series? How is it different from NASCAR and F1?

You can describe IndyCar Series as a combination between NASCAR and Formula One -- the series is based in the United States (like NASCAR) but races open wheel cars (like F1).

IndyCar races on a variety of different track types, including five ovals, six road courses and four street circuits across the U.S. and Canada. The crown jewel event, of course, is the famed Indy 500 -- which runs each May on Memorial Day Weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

What is the 2024 IndyCar Series schedule?

There are several schedule changes for the upcoming season. For the first time since 2008, IndyCar will run a non-points paying exhibition event -- an All-Star race, of sorts. The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge will take place on March 24, with the winner earning $1 million.

Elsewhere, the Nashville race will move from a street circuit to the Nashville Superspeedway oval to wrap up the season. It will be the first IndyCar race on the oval since 2008. Texas Motor Speedway was also removed from the schedule after hosting a race since 1997. The Milwaukee Mile will pick up two races for the first time since 2015.

Here's the full IndyCar schedule for 2024:

Round	Race name	Track	Date
1.	Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg	Streets of St. Petersburg	March 10
Exhibition	The Thermal Club $1 Million Challenge	The Thermal Club	March 24
2.	Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach	Streets of Long Beach	April 21
3.	Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix	Barber Motorsports Park	April 28
4.	Sonsio Grand Prix	Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course	May 11
5.	108th Running of the Indianapolis 500	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	May 26
6.	Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix	Streets of Detroit	June 2
7.	XPEL Grand Prix at Road America	Road America	June 9
8.	Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey	WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca	June 23
9.	Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio	Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course	July 7
10.	Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend Race 1	Iowa Speedway	July 13
11.	Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend Race 2	Iowa Speedway	July 14
12.	Honda Indy Toronto	Exhibition Place	July 21
13.	Bommarito Automotive Group 500	World Wide Technology Raceway	Aug. 17
14.	BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland	Portland International Raceway	Aug. 25
15.	Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s Race 1	Milwaukee Mile	Aug. 31
16.	Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s Race 2	Milwaukee Mile	Sept. 1
17.	Big Machine Music City Grand Prix	Nashville Superspeedway	Sept. 15

How to watch IndyCar in 2024

The entire IndyCar schedule will air on NBC networks once again in 2024. Every race will stream live on Peacock, with Toronto and Milwaukee (Race 1) exclusively streaming.

The remaining races will air on either NBC or USA Network.

• NBC will have St. Petersburg, Thermal Club, Alabama, Indy GP, Indy 500, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Iowa (Race 1 and 2) and Nashville.
• USA Network will have Long Beach, Detroit, Laguna Seca, Gateway, Portland and Milwaukee (Race 2).

When is the 2024 Indy 500?

The 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500 is set for Sunday, May 26, 2024, with green flag scheduled for 12:45 p.m. ET.

Who is racing in the IndyCar Series this season? List of teams and drivers

Here's a team-by-team breakdown of the drivers competing this season with their car numbers, statistics and info about their schedule (full-time unless otherwise noted):

Team Penske

• Josef Newgarden, No. 2 (29 career wins, two-time champion, defending Indy 500 winner)
• Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 (four career wins)
• Will Power, No. 12 (39 career wins, two-time champion, 2018 Indy 500 winner)

Chip Ganassi Racing

• Kyffin Simpson, No. 4 (19-year-old rookie from Barbados)
• Linus Lundqvist, No. 8 (24-year-old rookie from Sweden)
• Scott Dixon, No. 9 (55 career wins, six-time champion, 2008 Indy 500 winner)
• Alex Palou, No. 10 (nine career wins, two-time champion including 2023)
• Marcus Armstrong, No. 11 (first full IndyCar season)

Arrow McLaren

• Pato O'Ward, No. 5 (four career wins, McLaren's 2024 F1 reserve driver)
• Callum Ilott, No. 6 (only driving St. Petersburg and Thermal Club)
• David Malukas, No. 6 (will miss St. Petersburg and Thermal Club due to wrist injury)
• Alexander Rossi, No. 7 (eight career wins, 2016 Indy 500 winner)

McLaren-Hendrick

• Kyle Larson, No. 17 (2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, will only attempt Indy 500)

Andretti Global

• Colton Herta, No. 26 (seven career wins)
• Kyle Kirkwood, No. 27 (two career wins)
• Marcus Ericsson, No. 28 (four career wins, 2022 Indy 500 winner)
• Marco Andretti, No. 98 (two career wins, will only attempt Indy 500)

A.J. Foyt Racing

• Santino Ferruci, No. 14 (one career podium)
• Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 (23rd in the standings last season as a rookie)

Ed Carpenter Racing

• Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 (rookie, will attempt Indy 500 and 10 other races)
• Ed Carpenter, No. 20 (three career wins, will attempt Indy 500 and six other races)
• Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 (one career win)

Juncos Hollinger Racing

• Romain Grosjean, No. 77 (six career podiums)
• Agustín Canapino, No. 78 (21st in the standings last season as a rookie)

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

• Graham Rahal, No. 15 (six career wins)
• Pietro Fittipaldi, No. 30 (first full season, Haas' 2024 F1 reserve driver)
• Christian Lundgaard, No. 45 (one career win)
• Takuma Sato, No. 75 (six career wins, two-time Indy 500 winner, will only attempt Indy 500)

Meyer Shank Racing

• Hélio Castroneves, No. 06 (25 career wins, four-time Indy 500 winner, will only attempt Indy 500)
• Felix Rosenqvist, No. 60 (one career win)
• Tom Blomqvist, No. 66 (30-year-old rookie from England)

Dale Coyne Racing

• Jack Harvey, No. 18 (one career podium, will attempt 14 races)
• Nolan Siegel, No. 18 (19-year-old rookie from California, will attempt Indy 500 and three other races)
• Colin Braun, No. 51 (35-year-old rookie from Texas, will attempt first two races and potentially more)

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

• Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 23 (16 career wins, 2012 champion, 2024 Indy 500 winner, will only attempt Indy 500)
• Conor Daly, No. 24 (one career podium, will only attempt Indy 500)

Abel Motorsports

• R.C. Enerson, No. 50 (will only attempt Indy 500)