Storylines to Watch: The Indy 500 (IndyCar), Coca-Cola 600 (NASCAR) & Monaco GP (Formula 1) Bring the Heat on Sunday

The Memorial Day race weekend triple-header is almost here! The Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 bring the heat Sunday in the U.S., but don’t forget about the Monaco GP. I’m grabbing a 12-hour reservation of chair-time from sun-up to sun-down on… Sun-day. While the build-up to race weekend is full of hype, it’s 1,261 grueling miles of action for viewers interested in all three. Kyle Larson will make another attempt at the 500-600 double — racing in Indy before flying to Charlotte for a total of 1,100 miles (car) and 430 miles (air) in about 10 hours. It’s only been done once before.

Allow me to set the stage for each event before the best Sunday of the year for race fans…

🏁 Indy 500 (Sun. 12:45 pm ET, NBC)

Shwartzman Wins Pole | Team Penske Penalized

The Shwartz is loose! In a stunner this week, rookie driver Robert Shwartzman (25) stole pole position during Indy 500 qualifiers. He’s the first rookie driver since 1983 to grab the top spot on the grid. “Honestly, it feels like I’m dreaming.” Meanwhile, Team Penske cars were penalized for technical reasons (illegal parts). Adding to the excitement, the 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 has its first grandstands sellout since 2016 (350,000 tickets). *I was working at the 500 that year (I’ll take credit for the sellout).

🏁 Coca-Cola 600 (Sun. 6:00 pm ET, PRIME)

Drivers to Watch at Charlotte Motor Speedway

We already mentioned Kyle Larson’s third attempt at the Sunday double. Only one driver has ever finished all 1,100 miles (Tony Stewart, 2001). Larson is the favorite and the current points leader in NASCAR. Christopher Bell is tied for the most wins this season (3). William Byron, Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin are also clicking with fast cars that have gone the distance all season long. 

🏁 Monaco Grand Prix (Sun. 9:00 am ET, ESPN)

5 Drivers Who Can Win at Monte Carlo

Seeing this race in person remains one of my sports bucket-list items. I’ve got five drivers pegged as possible champs Sunday morning. Through seven races, it’s been Oscar Piastri’s season (4 wins). Max Verstappen (2 wins) and Lando Norris (1 win) are obvious threats, but Charles LeClerc (2) and Lewis Hamilton (1) have both been victorious at Monte Carlo in recent years.

Start your engines (soon). We’ll have more race weekend coverage on Friday.

Surprise! The Detroit Tigers Have (Quietly) Taken Over Before Summer

Didn’t think I’d say this a month ago, but the Detroit Tigers are MLB leaders with summer around the corner. Tarik Skubal fanned 8 last night in a win over the Cardinals (5-4). Tracking early-season ups-and-downs hasn’t been easy, but the powerhouses (Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, Padres and Cubs) still have to solve some issues. Meanwhile, the Phillies and Twins are soaring. Here’s a recap of the biggest risers and fallers with some late-May power rankings.

Risers: Tigers (↑7), Phillies (↑5), Twins (↑12)

Fallers: Giants (↓5), Padres (↓5), Guardians (↓5)

MLB Power Rankings

1. Tigers (32-17) | ↑7

2. Phillies (30-18) | ↑5

3. Dodgers (29-19) | ↓2

4. Yankees (28-19) | ↑2

5. Cubs (29-20) | —

6. Mets (29-20) | ↓4

7. Mariners (27-19) | ↑4

8. Padres (27-19) | ↓5

9. Giants (28-20) | ↓5

10. Twins (26-21) | ↑12

Teams 11-20: 11. Royals (27-22), 12. Cardinals (27-22), 13. Diamondbacks (26-22), 14. Guardians (25-21), 15. Astros (25-23), 16. Rangers (25-24), 17. Reds (25-25), 18. Braves (24-24), 19. Brewers (24-25), 20. Red Sox (25-25)

Teams 21-30: 21. Blue Jays (23-24), 22. Nationals (22-27), 23. Rays (22-26), 24. Angels (21-25), 25. Athletics (22-26), 26. Marlins (19-28), 27. Pirates (16-33), 28. Orioles (15-32), 29. White Sox (14-34), 30. Rockies (8-40)

View Full MLB Standings

🏀 WNBA

Aces def. Sun (87-62)

A’ja Wilson (22 pts, 10 rebs, 4 ast)

Dream def. Fever (91-90)

Rhyne Howard Hits Late Free Throw

Caitlin Clark (27-11-5 / 5-for-11 from 3)

⚽️ Soccer

EPL: Man. City def. AFC Bournemouth (3-1)

City Back in Top 4, Kevin De Bruyne’s Farewell

< NARRATIVES >

🏈 Stars Cleared for Flag Football

It’s (almost) official. The NFL is expected to pass a vote that allows players to participate in flag football at the 2028 L.A. Olympics. There are still details that need to be worked out between the league and the NFLPA, but expect some of your favorite stars going for gold. (ESPN)

🏀 Another WNBA Ratings Record

The Caitlin Clark vs. Angel Reese rivalry continues to sizzle WNBA viewership. The Fever-Sky tip-off game on Saturday drew an average audience of 2.7 million and broke the ESPN viewership record for a WNBA game. (NBC News)

🏁 Memorable Indy 500 Moments

With 108 years of history, the Indy 500 has provided countless moments of mayhem at the Brickyard. More than just speed, this is a Memorial Day Weekend tradition. Here are 25 of the most memorable moments from The Greatest Spectacle in Racing. (FOX Sports)

🏀 NBA Playoffs (Conference Finals)

G1: Pacers at Knicks (Wed. 8:00 pm, TNT)

G2: T-Wolves at Thunder (Thu. 8:30 pm, ESPN)

🏒 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Conference Finals)

G1: Oilers at Stars (Wed. 8:00 pm, ESPN)

G2: Panthers at Hurricanes (Thu. 8:00 pm, TNT)

⚾️ MLB

Rangers at Yankees (Wed. 7:05 pm, PRIME)

Full MLB Schedule

🏀 WNBA

Fever at Dream (Thu. 7:30 pm, PRIME)

Full WNBA Schedule

*All Times ET