The Indianapolis 500 starting grid has 11 rows of three cars each.
That creates the traditional 33-car field: three positions per row, designated inside, middle, and outside. The three-wide arrangement is one of the race’s most recognizable visual traditions, with the pole sitter occupying the inside position of the first row.
The number 33 is not the same as the race distance: the event covers 500 miles, or 200 laps of the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. The field size can also be confused with the race’s earlier history. In the inaugural 1911 event, 40 cars started, and those cars were arranged five to a row rather than three to a row. The modern 11-by-3 format became the standard associated with the Indy 500.