Helio Castroneves will indeed return to the Indy 500 in 2026

Having become a minority shareholder of Meyer Shank Racing in 2023, Helio Castroneves will continue in 2026 to try to add a fifth Indianapolis 500 victory to his illustrious record, for a team that finally belongs to him a little! Winner in 2001, 2002 and 2009 with Team Penske, then in 2021 with Meyer Shank, Castroneves could become, at 51 years old (he will celebrate his birthday on May 10, two weeks before the race), the oldest winner in the history of the event and the first to win five times.

The announcement made on March 17th by his team wasn't very surprising; a driver of Castroneves' caliber certainly wasn't going to end his career at the Indianapolis 500 without announcing it beforehand! The popular Brazilian will once again team up with the team's two full-time drivers, Swede Felix Rosenqvist and New Zealander Marcus Armstrong.

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AJ Foyt, Al Unser, and Rick Mears are the three other co-holders of the record of four Indianapolis 500 victories. Unser passed away in December 2021, a few months after Castroneves joined the very exclusive club of four-time Indy 500 winners.