McLaren Chases 1976 Return in Indy 500 Standings Four-Car Push

McLaren arrives in the indy 500 standings with four cars in the 33-strong field, and the number behind the effort is even sharper: 1976. That is the last time the team won the Indianapolis 500, when Johnny Rutherford delivered the victory McLaren is still trying to match.

Zak Brown has built the program into a larger threat, but the race remains the one gap on the resume. McLaren now has more entries, more proven speed and more shots at the same trophy, yet the drought stretches across five decades.

O'Ward Leads McLaren's Charge

Pato O'Ward is the most familiar face in the lineup. The 27-year-old will contest his seventh Indy 500 on Sunday, and he comes in with a 2025 season that included two wins and a second-place finish in the standings.

He has also lived the full range of Indianapolis outcomes. O'Ward said, "It’s all been either a learning curve or some of the greatest memories that I have in my career" and added, "There are just challenges that you need to accept when you sign up for this." He described the race more simply in one line: "It’s all positive."

Brown's Long Indy Return

Brown took control of McLaren at the end of 2016 and quickly pushed the brand back toward Indianapolis. In 2017, McLaren entered a one-off Indianapolis 500 with Fernando Alonso in collaboration with Andretti, then bought into Schmidt Peterson Motorsports three years later after failing to qualify with Alonso in 2019.

Brown said, "Indianapolis is kind of a second home." He also said, "The racing that I grew up with was Indy car racing." After steering McLaren through its Formula 1 rebuild, he added, "And here we are, coming off the most successful year the team’s ever had under our ownership."

Hunter-Reay Adds Experience

Ryan Hunter-Reay gives the four-car effort another layer. The 45-year-old is entering his 18th Indy 500, and he already owns the 2014 win. He said, "I’ve been there and done that, you know," and called the return, "It’s an opportunity to relive it, and to enjoy the team company and the team."

Christian Lundgaard brings a different kind of lift after scoring his first IndyCar win with McLaren two weeks ago at the road course race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Nolan Siegel rounds out the full-season trio with O'Ward, giving McLaren multiple paths into the race if one driver gets trapped by the usual Indianapolis traffic.

That depth is the real story for McLaren. Four cars in a 33-car field does not end a 50-year wait by itself, but it gives the team more chances than it has had in years to turn pace into a result at the Speedway.