The milk preference for every 2024 Indy 500 starter
SPEEDWAY, Ind. — An overwhelming 26 of the 33 starters for the 2024 Indianapolis 500 chose whole milk as their victory lane drink of choice.
The Indiana Dairy Association shared on social media the milk preference for every starter in the 2024 Indianapolis 500.
Among the 26 drivers choosing whole milk are defending Indy 500 Champion Josef Newgarden and Indy hotshot Kyle Larson.
Five drivers chose 2% milk:
- Pato O’Ward
- Helio Castroneves
- Takuma Sato
- Graham Rahal
- Romain Grosjean
Two drivers chose skim milk:
- Christian Lundgaard
- Christian Rasmussen
Last year, 28 of 33 starters chose whole milk, while Castroneves, Sato and Benjamin Pedersen chose 2% and Grosjean and Katherine Legge chose skim milk. Legge chose whole milk this year.
The tradition began in 1936 when Louis Meyer drank buttermilk in victory lane after his mother advised him that it might feel refreshing on a hot day. Indiana dairy executives caught wind of this and took over the annual tradition in 1956.
The tradition has only been broken a couple of times – most notably by Emerson Fittipaldi in 1993.
Fittipaldi, an orange grower in Brazil, drank orange juice in victory lane to promote the citrus industry. Backlash ensued from fans and officials, who forced him to forfeit $5,000 of his prize money and publicly apologize to the American Dairy Association.
Six of the last 11 Indy 500s were won by a driver preferring 2% milk – while four of the last 11 were won by a driver preferring whole milk.
The 2018 Indy 500, won by Will Power, is the only 500 of the last 11 where the winner didn’t have a preference. That was only one of 12 times when a driver didn’t have a preference since 2013.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com