Indy 500 stands on its own

The Indy 500 vs. the Daytona 500.

It’s like the difference between vanilla and chocolate.

Unless you’re an avid open-wheel fan, like myself. Then it takes on a whole different meaning. You have to ask yourself: Which race is more important?

The Indy 500, of course.

It has a longer and more storied history, a greater domestic and international heritage and it is contested on the most famous race track on the planet.

Enough said.

Originally designed to be a nearly day-long test of men and equipment, the Indianapolis 500 was a sweepstakes established so that builders of race cars could have the opportunity to compete against each other to see who could build a machine capable of lasting 500 miles at speeds (at the turn of the 20th century) that were considered blindingly fast.

The original track itself was treacherous and flat, composed of bumpy bricks and with long sweeping turns that would allow race cars to maintain as much speed as possible.

It was dangerous and deadly back then, and despite all the improvements made to the track and the cars it’s still as dangerous and as difficult to race on today as it was nearly 100 years ago.

Just ask any driver from any racing series around the world which trophy they would like to add to their mantle, and which race they would like to win, and there’s a very good chance he or she will tell you the Borg Warner trophy and the Indy 500.

Not the Daytona 500.

Even the best of stock car drivers tell you that to drive the Daytona International Speedway in a stock car requires minimal skills. In most cases, it’s all about keeping your foot to the floor. The best of stock car drivers will tell you it’s all about the car at Daytona.

Not at Indy.

Of course, as a driver you need to have a well-prepared race car to do well at Indianapolis, but you also need to bring with you something few human beings possess: The ability to make yourself keep your right foot planted to the floor while traveling into a turn at over 230 mph, because the moment you lift your foot, you and your car will be spinning wildly into the wall with disastrous results.

And did I mention that as a driver you’re doing this while sitting just inches off the ground, surrounded by gallons of instantly flammable racing fuel and without the benefit of a full roll cage or fenders to protect you?

The Indianapolis 500 over the decades has stood the test of time and remains the true test of man (or woman) vs. machine, not to mention the racing gods.

Sure, the Daytona 500 has become a grandiose marketing exercise staged annually at the start of the NASCAR racing season. It also signals the start of sales of new Dale Earnhardt Jr. merchandise.

Still, the Indianapolis 500 remains the largest single-day sporting event in the world, attended by more fans than any other.

The spectacle that is the Indy 500 is unique in all of racing, with its marching bands, driver parade (yes, these brave drivers are honored with a parade) through downtown Indianapolis and the time-honored tradition of Jim Nabors singing “Back Home Again in Indiana.”

I challenge anyone to attend the Indianapolis 500 and not get goosebumps while listening to Nabors prior to the start of the race.

There’s no question that the Daytona 500 draws huge crowds and is very popular and over the past decade has seen larger television ratings. Much of that is due to one driver – Dale Earnhardt Jr. Take the son of the sport’s greatest driver out of the equation and you’ll have a very different scenario.

The Indianapolis 500 is not about one driver, but 33 ultra-fast open wheel racers, flying three abreast down the front straightaway, risking it all for the win of a lifetime.

It has been and will always be the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

Indy 500 vs. Daytona 500?

Not even close.