INDIANAPOLIS – They’ve experienced a genuine sense of accomplishment in finishing second in the Indianapolis 500, but have also endured the emptiness of losing a full-time ride in the Verizon IndyCar Series.
What Carlos Munoz and JR Hildebrand didn’t lose was the goal to make it back for the 102nd Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil.
Munoz, reunited with Andretti Autosport for this one-off start, qualified 21st on Sunday at 226.048 mph in the No. 29 Ruoff Home Mortgage Honda. Munoz, a 26-year-old Colombian, wasn’t retained by AJ Foyt Racing after last season. He returned to Andretti Autosport, where he finished second in his 2013 Indy 500 debut and again in 2016.
Hildebrand, who parted with Ed Carpenter Racing after 2017, qualified 27th at 225.418 mph in the No. 66 Salesforce DRR Chevrolet for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. Like Munoz, he was second in his first Indy 500, although the result was memorable for the wrong reason — he crashed in the final turn while leading in 2011.
They know just making this race isn’t what it’s about. They need a strong result on May 27 to show prospective employers they are worthy of another opportunity.
“A good result would help me,” Munoz said. “I’m working hard. I know it depends on the result, right? I think I have shown I have what it takes.
“I have to show it in the race. It’s the best place to show everyone. Be quiet, show the result on the track.”
Hildebrand, a 30-year-old Californian now living in Colorado, says it’s about making the most of this opportunity and not what can be attained as a result.
“I’m here to try to win the ‘500,’” he said. “That’s the goal.
“I think we probably underperformed a little bit as a team in qualifying, but that’s on all of us. We’ve got some work to do. If we can end (Monday’s practice) feeling like we’ve got good race cars, then we’ll feel like we’re right back in the mix.”
Hildebrand mentioned it’s the farthest back he will start in this race, nine qualifying spots behind his previous worst, 18th in 2012. But in addition to his memorable 2011 debut that earned him rookie of the year honors, Hildebrand has finished sixth, eighth and 10th in six other “500” starts.
“That’s a challenge kind of in and of itself,” he said of his starting position. “The field will end up being spread out, and it’s hard to pass cars here. We’ll have to game-plan for that a little bit.
“The biggest thing that you have to do every year, no matter where you’re at, is understand what your strengths and weaknesses are. That’s what I’ve learned over the last handful of years that really goes a long way. You’ve got to be able to identify what it is you can do appreciably better than the guys that you’re going to be racing against and really figure out how to optimize around those advantages.”
Hildebrand lost his ride with Panther Racing after 2012. Four years of decent part-time results – primarily at Indianapolis – earned him the promotion last year with Carpenter’s team, but Hildebrand finished just 15th in points.
Carpenter, who has always been a big believer in Hildebrand, made the difficult decision to promote Spencer Pigot, who had been driving road and street courses only for two years, to replace Hildebrand in the No. 21 Preferred Freezer Services Chevrolet.
While Hildebrand will start from near the rear of the field, Carpenter won the pole for the third time, Pigot qualified sixth and Danica Patrick will roll off from seventh.
“By the end of the season last year, it just kind of wasn’t clicking on a number of levels,” Hildebrand said of the ECR situation. “Nothing personal was going on. I’m still buddies with Ed. It wasn’t like it came out of nowhere. We had a really tough season just across the board. It took a little bit of time to get over that. We had nothing fall our way. We had a couple of good runs, but it ended up being a grind.”
Munoz had six top-10 finishes last year, but the best result in his one season with AJ Foyt Racing was seventh. He finished 16th in the points, right behind Hildebrand.
“You adapt to what you have,” Munoz said. “My deal for the Indy 500 with Andretti is pretty good. We signed it early, more or less in November. I know it’s not for a full season, but I try to keep busy and will try to figure out something for next season.
“My motivation is the 500. I want to enjoy the 500 as best as I can because you don’t know if it’s the last. I will try to enjoy each lap, each session, because that’s what it takes. Then I think the result will come.”