Sam Hornish Jr. Reflects on the Greatest Pass in Indy 500 Histor...

Sam Hornish Jr. Reflects on the Greatest Pass in Indy 500 History, His Son’s Racing Career, and Life After the Track

Twenty years after making one of the most dramatic passes in Indianapolis 500 history, 2006 champion Sam Hornish Jr. joined Query & Company to look back on a career-defining moment that still gives him nerves even on video replay.

Hornish opened up about the final four laps of the 2006 race, explaining that the speed advantage over rookie Marco Andretti was no accident.

Running a trimmed-out setup with negative four degrees of rear wing versus Andretti’s more conservative configuration, Hornish had been faster than Marco virtually every day of that month of May.

A pit stop penalty had seemingly ended his day, but a calculated fuel strategy and a late caution put him back in contention and the rest is history.

He also addressed whether he and Marco ever talked about it.

The answer came with a laugh: Andretti once called him out of nowhere, opened with a colorful greeting, and Hornish’s wife reminded him he probably had it coming.

Off the track, Hornish discussed watching his son race go-karts admitting it’s harder to watch than it ever was to drive and the transition from laser-focused competitor to relaxed family man with five kids and a graduation party to plan.

He also weighed in on the Rossi-O’Ward practice crash that rocked the Indy paddock earlier that day, noting that adversity before a race isn’t always a bad thing and that he knows from experience.

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