INDIANAPOLIS -- Marcus Ericsson earned $3.1 million for his victory in the 2022 Indy 500, which featured a record purse of $16 million that nearly doubled last year’s prize-winning total.
Ericsson earned the largest winner’s payout in the race’s history. The 106th Indianapolis 500 drew a crowd estimated by the track at more than 325,000 as Indianapolis Motor Speedway returned to full capacity for the first time in three years. The purse was an increase of more than 80 percent over the prize money from the previous year.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Indy 500 was limited to 135,000 fans and offered a purse of $8,854,565. That was up slightly from the $7,502,500 purse ($1.37 million to winner Takuma Sato) for the 2020 Indy 500, which was held without fans in attendance for the first time. Before the pandemic moved the race to August and decimated revenue streams for the NTT IndyCar Series and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the 2020 Indy 500 purse originally was slated to be a record $15 million with at least $2 million to the winner
OFFICIAL BOXSCORE: Final rundown of the 106th Indy 500 with purse payouts
The largest Indy 500 purse before this year was $14.4 million for the 2008 Indy 500 won by Scott Dixon (whose share was $2,988,065). Ericsson’s haul made him the second Indy 500 winner to top $3 million (2009 winner Helio Castroneves won $3,048,005.
The average payout to the 33 drivers in the 2022 Indy 500 was $485,000. Every driver in the 2022 Indy 500 earned at least six figures (with 26th-place finisher Stefan Wilson at $102,000 as the lowest earner).
“The Indianapolis 500 is the greatest race in the world, and these drivers lay it all on the line for a chance to drink the winner’s milk and kiss the famous Yard of Bricks,” Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske said in a release. “This year’s record-setting purse is reflective of their tireless pursuit of history and the world-class talent they display on every lap.”
Pato O’Ward took home $1 million as the 2022 runner-up to Ericsson -- the largest winnings for the second-place finisher in nearly a decade.
Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, who finished 28th in his Indy 500 debut, earned a $50,000 bonus as the 2022 Indianapolis 500 rookie of the year, bringing his total to $207,900. Johnson qualified 12th for the race and consistently was fast in practice on the 2.5-mile oval.
Though the Indy 500 finish factors heavily into choosing the rookie of the year, performance during the month (including qualifying) and positive contributions to promoting the event also can factor in heavily. The award is selected by a panel voting on “the driver who has performed with the most distinction among first-year drivers in the Indianapolis 500. Criteria include on-track performance in practice, qualifying and the race, media and fan interaction, sportsmanship and positive influence on the Indy 500.”
The purse awards were presented Monday night in a ceremony at the J.W. Marriott in downtown Indianapolis.
Click here for the boxscore with earnings from the 106th Indy 500.
The payouts for the 2022 Indy 500:
1. Marcus Ericsson, $3,100,000
2. Pato O’Ward, $1,000,000
3. Tony Kanaan, $400,000
4. Felix Rosenqvist, $570,500
5. Alexander Rossi, $548,000
6. Conor Daly, $527,100
7. Helio Castroneves, $205,300
8. Simon Pagenaud, $507,000
9. Alex Palou, $569,600
10. Santino Ferrucci, $134,500
11. Juan Pablo Montoya, $127,000
12. JR Hildebrand, $175,300
13. Josef Newgarden, $530,000
14. Graham Rahal, $483,000
15. Will Power, $474,500
16. David Malukas, $463,000
17. Kyle Kirkwood, $463,000
18. Christian Lundgaard, $463,000
19. Ed Carpenter, $117,000
20. Devlin DeFrancesco, $463,000
21. Scott Dixon, $707,000
22. Marco Andretti, $114,400
23. Sage Karam, $104,500
24. Jack Harvey, $158,800
25. Takuma Sato, $462,000
26. Stefan Wilson, $102,000
27. Dalton Kellett, $462,000
28. Jimmie Johnson, $207,900
29. Scott McLaughlin, $462,000
30. Colton Herta, $469,500
31. Romain Grosjean, $478,500
32. Callum Ilott, $463,000
33. Rinus VeeKay, $487,800