Santino Ferrucci reveals his secret of success at the Indy 500

Santino Ferrucci revealed that his 'secret' of success at the Indy 500 was simply to treat the historic race 'like any other' in the IndyCar championship. The 26-year-old is all set to compete in his seventh Indy 500 this year, with A. J. Foyt Racing.

Ferrucci first arrived in IndyCar in 2018, when he stepped in for four races at Dale Coyne Racing. Subsequently, he received a full-time seat at DCR in 2019 and completed two full seasons with the team.

The American made his Indy 500 debut in 2019 and has never finished outside of the top 10 in his six races at the historic race till now. He was named the Indy 500 rookie of the year that year, but his best result at the IMS came in 2023, when he managed to finish in third, securing his maiden Indy 500 podium.

Ferrucci was asked on the Pit Pass Indy podcast on Wednesday (April 30) as to what the secret was behind him having such consistently good results at the Indy 500. He said (29:13 onwards):

"Man, just treating this race like any other," replied Ferrucci.

"It's special, I love all camaraderie here, all the fans, all the people that show up, the traditions, I love all of that stuff. But at the end of the day, strap your helmet on and get behind the wheel of that car. You gotta remember, it's any other race in the championship," he added.

Ferrucci will yet again be competing at this year's Indy 500 with A. J. Foyt, as he aims to claim his maiden victory at one of motorsport's most iconic events. The 109th running of the Indy 500 is scheduled to be held on May 25.

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Santino Ferrucci highlights the need for risk management at the Indy 500

Santino Ferrucci at the 107th Running of the Indy 500, 2023 - Source: Getty

Santino Ferrucci highlighted that the most important aspects of being successful at the Indy 500 according to him are familiarity with the track and car, and also managing risk.

When asked by the aforementioned podcast's host, Bruce Martin, if the IMS is indeed 'the ultimate racer's racetrack' and if that is why he has had success at the event previously, Santino said:

"That's very true. I mean, you do have to be one with the car, and with the track and you do take a lot of risk here." (29:40 onwards)

"But I feel like, understanding where and when to take that risk is also crucial to being able to win this race." he added.

Ferrucci has had a season with not a lot to write home about so far in 2025, with his best result coming at the Long Beach GP, where he finished the race in 11th place, but only after having made up 16 places during the race. The driver is joined at the team by David Malukas this year, who has also had an underwhelming start to the year.