Jacob Abel: “I've Pictured and Envisioned Myself Sitting on That Grid So Many Times Before”

Seeking Indy 500 redemption [0:00]

Jacob Abel: It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t fun.

Greg: In 2025, which driver clinched the 33rd and final starting spot for the Indy 500 came down to a storybook shootout between two teammates.

Jacob: It was honestly awful because neither of us wanted to be there.

Greg: Jacob Abel, an IndyCar rookie fighting to start this race for the first time. And Rinus VeeKay, who in all of his Indy 500 attempts, had never qualified worse than seventh.

Will Buxton: If he can find a half a mile an hour for the average, Jacob Abel will be in the Indy 500…

Rinus VeeKay will be in the Indy 500. 

Jacob: It sucks, but it was cool while it lasted.

Greg: A year later, Jacob is back racing a one-off entry for his family team.

‍Jacob: You have to be on Bump Day…

Greg: So, what was it like missing out on his dream?

Jacob: …and experience what happens, you know, at the top on the other end of the spectrum to fully understand what this place means.

‍Greg: And what's it like coming back for redemption?

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Picking up the pieces after being bumped from the 2025 Indy 500 [1:10]

Greg: If you were to go back to the qualifying last year, what had people told you about it? Because I remember watching Graham Rahal get knocked out and just how emotional the whole thing is, how much weight is put on your shoulders. What did drivers talk about when they talked about that day?

Jacob: You know, I honestly got a lot of support last year after everything went down. Support from drivers I'd never even really talked to before. Guys like Ryan Hunter-Reay, he won the first Indy 500 that I ever attended back in 2014. So that was just a cool thing to have a guy like that come up to me. Obviously, he has dealt with similar stuff, experiencing Bump Day and all of that before. And, he said that you have to be on Bump Day and experience that, and experience what happens at the top on the other end of the spectrum to fully understand what this place means. 

Honestly, sharing the whole experience with my teammate at the time, Rinus VeeKay, who up until last year had a qualifying record here of like 3.2 or something was his average [Editor’s note: Rinus’ held a qualifying average of 3.8 through his 2024 Indy 500 run]. So that made me a lot more confident and made it a lot easier because we were both fighting against each other for the last spot. It made me feel at least a little bit better about what I was doing for sure.

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How it feels when your teammate becomes your enemy [2:23]

‍Greg: How did that play out? I mean we were standing there right behind his pit box and then watching you get out and go talk and and after you spoke you were incredibly calm. You said,

“It sucks, but it was cool while it lasted.”

It felt very measured for how much was happening. Did it sink in at that moment? Did it take a while to appreciate?

Jacob: It honestly all unraveled so quickly. We didn't really think, you know, you always have it in the back of your mind, okay Bump Day, all of that. But the whole week leading up to it, we really didn't think we were at threat for that. Yeah, we weren't gonna go out there and get pole [position], but we never really…

Greg: There's 32 other spots.

Jacob: Exactly. So it was almost the same thing as I'm experiencing now. Like it hadn't fully set in that I was racing in the Indy 500 yet. The whole month it really hadn't. So then it kind of gets stripped away and it's like, okay. You know, Sunday rolled around and this is just another Indy 500 where I'm spectating. I'm still happy to be here. Weird that I should have maybe been in the race and or could have or whatever. Definitely a bit of an emotional roller coaster.

It wasn't easy, it wasn't fun, especially to have to battle against Rinus. We worked so closely together through the whole entire season. And then that day, basically that hour, that last row shootout hour, we had to go, kind of, go head to head against each other.

Greg: Not kind of, you did.

Jacob: We were trying to out qualify each other. We were trying to okay, we need to go out now and then maybe they won't get a chance. It's terrible because neither of us wanted to be there. We were both unfortunately a decent chunk slower than the rest of the field.

Greg: In most races, slow means qualifying at the back of the grid. But with the Indy 500, you don't just qualify for your starting position, you qualify to race it. You see, there's only 33 grid spots, which means if you're too slow on Bump Day, like Jacob was, then you won't race at all.

Jacob: It was honestly awful because yeah, Rinus has become a really close friend of mine this year. He was a mentor, he was helping me out a lot. It was super tough to have to deal with all that.

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Why the Indy 500 is a dream come true for Jacob Abel [4:33]

Greg: I've heard you speak about how this race has been such a part of your life for the whole of it. What is that experience like in your first time racing this race? I don't mean what happened. I mean truly like when you showed up on day one.

Jacob: No, it's spectacular. I mean, last year at the Open Test, you know, it's over a year ago now, it was so cool. You spend so much time at this place throughout the junior open wheel ranks and and even in IndyCar and all of that, testing and we spend a lot of time at this track. So to finally, go around it in the correct direction was pretty special for sure. And then going through ROP [Rookie Orientation Program] the first time is always surreal.

Race day is going to be super emotional for sure. Especially after last year, you know, coming so close. I've pictured and envisioned myself sitting on that grid so many times before, to finally actually do it this year is going to be insane.

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Jacob’s new approach to the Indy 500 [5:30]

Greg: This time, Jacob is ‘lucky’ that only 33 entries means he has a starting spot. But racing the Indy 500 requires more than just months of preparation and a speedway car. You only have to look at Alexander Rossi, who went from qualifying front row to crutches in a day, for proof that the Indy 500 never shows mercy. For Jacob to find redemption, it would mean focus and preparation through to the bitter end.

Greg: How has that changed your approach into what you've done this year versus last year in terms of the setup and getting everything going? Is it being more open to change?

Jacob: Yeah, I think, you know, having last year to kind of have as a baseline helps. I did all of the practice week. I did way more qualifying runs than I would have liked to for sure. I think that definitely helped me a lot going into this month. You know, having a little bit more of a base to pull from, obviously, you know, doing it with my family team and the relevancy of staying in a car through the offseason and and through these first races is definitely helped to keep me a little bit less rusty for sure.

Greg: Now that you're back here, your starting position is guaranteed and you'll go out. How has the pressure felt different to you? Like what have been the things that you've been really trying to get right or feel good about now that you know that at least that part is done?

Jacob: I got out of the car and was disappointed because I thought, you know, we should have been further up the grid. And I really wanted to have a really good run, especially after last year. And so I was a bit disappointed. But then, you know, everyone's coming up to me and saying, You just qualified for the Indy 500. What does this mean? I'm like, You're right. Well, I don't know why I don't feel more excited. But I guess that's just because I'm a race car driver.

But since then it has set in a lot more and it is going to be super special. I still don't know what it's all going to feel like and all that. And it's going to be super emotional, I know, but it is a pretty cool thing for sure.

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What it means to Jacob having his family’s support [7:27]

Greg: Last year, Jacob raced for Dale Coyne. But this year, the car says Abel. He's grown up with this team. Mechanics became brothers, and the garage became his home away from home. The question for me was whether racing with his extended family would make the difference. 

You've got people around you who've been around you since you were a kid racing, so they know you well. What does that feel like for you? How does that change your mindset coming into everything?

‍Jacob: You know, it just makes me appreciate the whole entire experience a lot more. And then to add the whole entire family side of it, my literal family has been here and been very supportive. But then also my sort of adapted family over the past few years with Abel Motorsports. And these are people that have been there pretty much since day one of my racing career. I've shared success, wins, fought for championships, podiums, all of that with a ton of the people that are in this garage and working on this IndyCar. And so with that being said, you know, I have so much trust in them. It's just trying to kind of work together and channel that energy into an IndyCar and learn that.

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What winning would mean to Jacob and the Abel Motorsports family [8:36]

Greg: So what would the win then mean for you, for the family, for the extended family being the team?

Jacob: I think the win is already just kind of being here and just having gotten to this point. We have a race car that we know is fast and we know that we can put it on track on Sunday and go out and have a chance at a good result. And I think that in itself is a massive win for everyone. 

We've already achieved so much and I'm already so happy with that. What happens on race day is almost going to be a bonus because I'm already just so proud of everything that everyone's been able to do. We're the smallest team here by a long shot. And we've had, on top of that, a very little amount of time to put everything together. So I think anything we can do will be pretty spectacular.

Greg: I mean, that puts you in the perfect situation. It's like optimizing the variables in the worst way. But then you learn from that experience versus being in a castle where you have everything laid out, you’ve got months to prepare. You don't have to think about it.

Jacob: I think it all comes down to kind of what you expect and managing that and everything, and I think that's key.

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