The 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series was the 16th season of the IndyCar Series and the 100th recognized season of American open-wheel motor racing. The season was sanctioned by IndyCar and was part of the Mazda Road to Indy. The season began in March and concluded in October, consisting of seventeen events. It was the final season running the Dallara IR-05 spec cars, which had been the series' sole chassis supplier since 2007. It was also the final season running the Honda Indy V8 naturally-aspirated engines, which had been the series' sole engine supplier since 2006. The events took place in twelve states of the United States, as well Canada, Brazil, and Japan. The schedule featured ten street/road courses and eight on oval tracks. The premier event was the 95th Indianapolis 500, won by Dan Wheldon. Dario Franchitti claimed his fourth IndyCar Series Championship title. He went into the final race of the season leading Will Power by 18 points. However, the race and the season were both marred by a 15-car pile-up early in the race that claimed Wheldon's life. The race was abandoned after 12 completed laps and the final points total reverted to the previous event, with Franchitti winning the title. Rookie of the Year honors went to Canadian James Hinchcliffe, who led American J. R. Hildebrand in the rookie standings by 6 points going into the final race. Hildebrand's season was highlighted by a nearly winning the Indianapolis 500. His 2nd-place finish at Indy earned him top rookie honors for the race. This season marked the end of several drivers' IndyCar careers. After 11 season, 2011 saw the conclusion of two-time series runner up Davey Hamilton's career. Hamilton would later partner with Sam Schmidt to form Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports, a team that would last for two seasons before changing to Schmidt Peterson Motorsports from 2014 onwards. Vítor Meira was another who made 2011 his final season; in his career, Meira set the record for the most podiums without a win, with 15. Paul Tracy would make an attempt to find a car for 2012, but was unsuccessful in doing so, making 2011 his final season in IndyCar also. Bertrand Baguette would shift his focus to sports cars for 2012, racing in the World Endurance Championship. Raphael Matos would only race until the Indy 500 and for 2012 he would switch to Stock Car Brasil. Danica Patrick would head to NASCAR for 2011 leaving an open seat at Andretti Autosport. Tomas Scheckter made his final starts of his career across several teams in 2011 before moving to the United Kingdom. Buddy Rice would be yet another to make 2011 his final season. Rice collected three wins in his IndyCar career. Wheldon would sign a contract to race for Andretti Autosport for 2012 driving the number 27 car, replacing Danica Patrick, but the 2005 champion was killed in an accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This would be the final season for Versus broadcasting IndyCar. Versus would be rebranded into NBC Sports for 2012, a name that has continued to this day (2024). ESPN would continue to also broadcast certain races as well.

Series news

2011 IndyCar Series schedule

Oval speedway Road course Street circuit

Schedule development

Existing contracts

New or returning races

Discontinued races

Confirmed entries

Team and driver movements

Race summaries

Round 1: Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

Round 2: Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Legacy

Round 3: Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

Round 4: Itaipava São Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

Round 5: 95th Indianapolis 500

Round 6: Firestone Twin 275s

Round 7: Milwaukee 225

Round 8: Iowa Corn Indy 250

Round 9: Honda Indy Toronto

Round 10: Edmonton Indy

Round 11: Honda Indy 200

Round 12: MoveThatBlock.com Indy 225

Round 13: Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma

Round 14: Baltimore Grand Prix

Round 15: Indy Japan: The Final

Round 16: Kentucky Indy 300

Round 17: IZOD IndyCar World Championship

Results

Points standings

Driver standings

After qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 had concluded, Bruno Junqueira was replaced by Ryan Hunter-Reay, who did not qualify for the 500. Junqueira received full qualifying points for a 19th place qualification. At the Las Vegas Indy 300, Dan Wheldon died from injuries sustained in a 15-car crash on lap 11. The race was abandoned, the results were stricken from the record book, and the statistics did not count. Simona de Silvestro was awarded with 5 points at Iowa as a 'non starter', but her withdrawal on medical grounds before the start of practice meant that she did not compete in any of the official sessions.

Entrant standings

Footnotes