Does your height make a difference in IndyCar racing? After searching the web for the heights of every IndyCar driver for 2019, some of the stats are surprising.
- Zach Veach: 5’2
- Takuma Sato: 5’4
- Tony Kanaan: 5’5
- Santino Ferucci: 5’5
- Felix Rosenqvist: 5’7
- Marco Andretti: 5’8
- Ed Jones: 5’8
- Matheus Leist: 5’9
- James Hinchcliffe: 5’9
- Spencer Pigot: 5’9
- Ed Carpenter: 5’9
- Jack Harvey: 5’9
- Pato O’Ward: 5’9
- Colton Herta: 5’10
- Ben Hanley: 5’10
- Charlie Kimball: 5’10
- Scott Dixon: 5’10
- Will Power: 5’10
- Sebastien Bourdais: 5’10
- Simon Pagenaud: 5’10
- Marcus Ericsson: 5’11
- Max Chilton: 6’0
- Josef Newgarden: 6’0
- Alexander Rossi: 6’1
- Ryan Hunter-Reay: 6’1
- Graham Rahal 6’2
Breaking down the data shows that only five drivers are 6’0 or taller, with Graham Rahal being the leader at 6’2. The tallest IndyCar driver in recent years was Justin Wilson at over 6’3, who died in 2015 after being hit in the head by a nose cone at Pocono. There were only four drivers 5’5 or shorter. Zach Veach was easily the shortest driver at 5’2.
The average height for the IndyCar grid is about 5’9, and six drivers register at that height. The most common height was at 5’10 with seven drivers, and half of the field is listed at either 5’9 or 5’10. This follows very closely with the average height for American men. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in 2016 that the average height for men is 5’9 in the U.S.
The tallest drivers in Formula 1 are usually just at 6’0, and Estaban Ocon was the tallest in recent years at 6’1. This list of IndyCar heights shows that drivers above 6’0 can still compete for championships, like Hunter-Reay’s title in 2012 and Rossi’s runner-up finish last season. However, the most important factor is weight and body build.
Rahal weighs closer to 200 pounds, and he described his biceps as “bigger than Rossi’s legs” on the Marshall Pruett podcast earlier this month. He added that he faces challenges like having his steering wheel as high as possible on ovals, which means more debris hitting his hands during the race. He also had to step away from the Acura Penske team in endurance racing because he couldn’t ever feel comfortable in the smaller prototype.
Rossi weighs under 160 pounds, and Hunter-Reay is listed at 175 pounds. Newgarden is the second-heaviest at 177 pounds, which leaves a huge gap to Rahal. Rahal has still had lots of success in IndyCar, winning six races and appearing on 23 podiums in 194 starts.
Teams are required to meet a minimum weight, so teams with lighter drivers use ballast to achieve the correct weight by adding it with tungsten parts under the seat or up to 10 pounds by the pedals. Drivers heavier than the 185 pound target, which is only Rahal, can use strategies like titanium bolts to lighten the car to meet the 185 pound target. This is a costly process, but it ensures that everyone is as equal as possible in the spec-series of IndyCar.
Being a tall driver can have its difficulties, but it’s less important than in Formula 1. There aren’t requirements to have weights of drivers balanced out in F1, which can hinder larger drivers and force them to make sacrifices. One example is Marcus Ericsson, who said last year that he hasn’t had a drink system in his car for two years in order to save weight.
Taller drivers generally have larger builds and carry more weight, making it difficult to fit inside the cockpit of the car. It seems that being taller than 6’3 and weighing more than 200 pounds is currently the cut off point for being able to effectively fit inside an IndyCar.
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