Indy 500 fast facts Marco and Michael Andretti will become the 20th father-and-son combination to have raced in the Indianapolis 500 and the fourth father-son duo to race in the same event. There are six former Indianapolis 500 winners in the starting field: Al Unser Jr. (1992 and 1994), Buddy Lazier (1996), Eddie Cheever Jr. (1998), Helio Castroneves (2001-02), Buddy Rice (2004) and Dan Wheldon (2005). Between them, they have eight victories. The record is 10, in 1992. The fewest, other than the inaugural race in 1911, is one in 1996, Arie Luyendyk. There are five rookies in the field, the fewest since 1999, when there were four rookies. This year's rookies: Marco Andretti, Townsend Bell, P.J. Chesson, Arie Luyendyk Jr., and Thiago Medeiros. There were six rookies in 2005 and 2001, seven in 2000, eight rookies in 2004 and nine each in 2002 and 2003. Al Unser Jr. is the most experienced driver in the field, with 17 previous Indianapolis 500 starts. The record is 35, set in consecutive years from 1958-92 by A.J. Foyt. Michael Andretti has led 426 career laps in the Indianapolis 500, more than any other driver in this year's field. There are a combined 138 previous Indianapolis 500 starts among the 33 drivers in this year's field. The record is 260 years of experience, set in 1987 and 1992. There were 93 years of combined experience in last year's field. The oldest qualifier is Eddie Cheever, 48. The youngest qualifier is Marco, who turned 19 on March 13. There are 10 Panoz chassis and 23 Dallara chassis in the field. Andretti Green Racing qualified five cars, most of any team, and the most since Team Scandia qualified five cars in 1997. There are six graduates of the Indy Pro Series in the field, the most graduates in the field ever. The six graduates are: Marco Andretti, Ed Carpenter, P.J. Chesson, Jeff Simmons, Arie Luyendyk Jr., and Thiago Medeiros.
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