Alex Palou favored to win his first career Indianapolis 500 this May

  • Alex Palou (+550) is the favorite to win the Indy 500 for the first time in his career
  • Last year’s winner Josef Newgarden (+600) claimed victory at the Firestone Grand Prix at St Petersburg 
  • The Indianapolis 500 will take place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana on May 26, 2024

We’re about six weeks out from the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500. Alex Palou won his second IndyCar championship last year but has never tasted victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Will the Spaniard capture the checkered flag and an ice-cold glass of milk this May?

Before we look at the Indy 500 futures, here’s where you can find all the Sports & Competitions to bet on in 2024 and see the latest Sports Betting Odds & Picks.

Indy 500 Winner

DriverBetOnline ReviewBovadaMyBookie Review
Alex Palou+550+550+550
Josef Newgarden+600+600+600
Pato O'Ward+650+650+650
Scott Dixon+800+800+800
Marcus Ericsson+1000+1000+1000
Alexander Rossi+1100+1100+1100
Scott McLaughlin+1200+1200+1200
Kyle Kirkwood+1400+1400+1400
Will Power+1400+1400+1400
Colton Herta+1800+1800+1800
David Malukas+1800+1800+1800
Santino Ferrucci+1800+1800+1800
Felix Rosenqvist+2000+2000+2000
Rinus Veekay+2000+2000+2000
Linus Lundqvist+2500+2500+2500
Christian Lundgaard+3000+3000+3000
Graham Rahal+3500+3500+3500
Helio Castroneves+4000+4000+4000
Ed Carpenter+5000+5000+5000
Marcus Armstrong+5000+5000+5000
Marco Andretti+6000+6000+6000
Romain Grosjean+6000+6000+6000
Tom Blomqvist+15000+15000+15000
Christian Rasmussen+20000+20000+20000
Sting Ray Robb+20000+20000+20000
Agustin Canapino+30000+30000+30000

Palou favored over Newgarden

Alex Palou (+550) said winning the Indy 500 is a “big, big goal” for him in 2024. The Chip Ganassi driver finished fourth last year and second back in 2021. The reigning and two-time IndyCar Series champion is coming off a dominating 5.7929-second victory at the $1 Million Challenge at The Thermal Club.

While the Spaniard is a richer man today as result, the race was a non-points exhibition so he still trails Josef Newgarden (+600) and four others in the season standings. Newgarden won the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix in St. Petersburg before finishing eighth in the exhibition challenge.

Open testing results

IndyCar returns to championship competition this Sunday, April 23rd with the Grand Prix of Long Beach. Last week, 34 drivers conducted open testing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Newgarden, last year’s champion, ran the fastest lap at 228.811 mph.

NASCAR driver Kyle Larson got up to 226.384 mph despite it being only his second time on the track in an Indy car. Palou and his teammate Scott Dixon (+800) placed third and fourth, respectively.

Alex PalouIndy 500 Winner
★★★★★
+550
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Josef NewgardenIndy 500 Winner
★★★★★
+600
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Other Indy 500 contenders

Pato O’Ward (+650) narrowly lost the Indy 500 to Marcus Ericsson (+1000) in 2022. Only four drivers in the series have more top-three finishes than O’Ward (20) over the past four seasons. The 24-year-old Mexican finished runner up in St. Petersburg for the second-straight year before a disappointing performance at the $1 Million Challenge.

Meanwhile, Ericsson followed up his 2021 victory with a second-place showing last year. However, given that he is now driving for Wayne Taylor Racing, rather than Chip Ganassi, the Swede is a terrible bet at +1000.

Potential Longshots?

Keep in mind that IndyCar is not anything like Formula 1 where the favorite wins every race. In 2023, the series produced seven different winners so there is room to make a longshot bet.

After finishing third in the point standings in 2023, Scott McLaughlin (+1200) is off to a hot start to the year. The three-time Australian Supercars champion finished third at the Firestone Grand Prix and second at the $1 Million Challenge. His Penske teammate Will Power (+1400) is also a decent value considering the two-time IndyCars series champion won the race in 2018.

Scott McLaughlinIndy 500 Winner
★★★★★
+1200
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Steve Starr

Highly analytical and results-driven Sports Betting Expert with over 20 years of experience in sports analytics, betting strategy development, and risk management. Proven track record of leveraging statistical models and market analysis to achieve consistent profitability in sports betting. Adept at using data-driven insights to forecast outcomes, identi...

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