{"id":58072,"date":"2026-05-13T20:25:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T01:25:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=58072"},"modified":"2026-05-13T20:56:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T01:56:39","slug":"defending-champ-palou-paces-opening-practice-for-110th-indianapolis-500","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/13\/defending-champ-palou-paces-opening-practice-for-110th-indianapolis-500\/","title":{"rendered":"Defending champ Palou paces opening practice for 110th Indianapolis 500"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Alex Palou – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Walt Kuhn<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio<\/em><\/p>\n

Reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Alex Palou sussed out \u201ca couple of issues\u201d to post the fastest lap on Opening Day of track activity for the 110th<\/sup> running of \u201cThe Greatest Spectacle in Racing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Alex Palou – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Chris Jones<\/p><\/div>\n

Palou turned a hot lap of 39.8342-seconds\/225.937 mph with less than 15 minutes remaining in Tuesday\u2019s six-hour session around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Spaniard\u2019s fast lap was recorded on the first run Palou made after his crew evaluated the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda for nearly 90 minutes. Palou pulled into the pits around 4:15 p.m. (EDT) after sensing a problem with the right rear of the car.<\/p>\n

SEE:<\/strong> Practice Results<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, it\u2019s good; it\u2019s good now,\u201d said Palou, 29, the four-time\/reigning NTT IndyCar Series champion. \u201cWe had a couple of issues, but we fixed them. It wasn\u2019t a mechanical issue or anything. It was just balance, not being super-happy with it. We found something that explained what I was feeling, and it was good to go back out today before we go to sleep so we can be a bit happier.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Alex Palou – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Chris Owens<\/p><\/div>\n

Palou is driving a different Honda-powered Dallara chassis this Month of May than he wheeled during the Indy 500 Open Test on April 28-29 at IMS, as well as a different machine than the one he drove to his first career oval victory in last year\u2019s Indy 500. Palou only turned 28 laps, tied for third-fewest among the 33 drivers on track.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou always want to do a lot more,\u201d Palou said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t do many laps today, but still we understood a lot of stuff. Feeling much better than (earlier in the afternoon).\u201d<\/p>\n

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Marcus Armstrong – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Joe Skibinski<\/p><\/div>\n

New Zealander Marcus Armstrong was fastest for most of the day and ended up second at 225.895 mph in the No. 66 Acura Honda fielded by Meyer Shank Racing\/with Curb Agajanian. Indianapolis-area native Conor Daly was third at 225.838 mph in the No. 23 DRR KINGSPAN Chevrolet of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.<\/p>\n

“Yeah, our car is fast,\u201d said Daly, a 34-year-old native of Noblesville, Ind. \u201cIt just feels really good. So just kind of driving around and working through a few small things and, yeah, just tuning to kind of what I want and evaluating a few other things.<\/p>\n

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Conor Daly – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Joe Skibinski<\/p><\/div>\n

“Just a good Day One. Obviously, the test was good, too, but this whole process is you can get swept up in it. You can get behind and you can get a little messy. Like, the wind got super-gusty towards the end of the day. One set of (Firestone Firehawk) tires, all of a sudden I think I’m going to crash. I’m sliding around. But we quartered the left rear, so I was, like, \u2018OK, we figured that problem out.\u2019 Then we put another set of tires on. All problems are solved.<\/p>\n

“You don’t want to fall behind in kind of overreacting to things. I think that’s just kind of what our job is _ just go through things one step at a time. And it feels good so far.”<\/p>\n

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Josef Newgarden – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Matt Fraver<\/p><\/div>\n

Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden was fourth at 225.121 mph in the No. 2 Shell Fuel Rewards Team Penske Chevrolet, while 2008 race-winner Scott Dixon of New Zealand completed the top- five as last driver faster than 225 mph. A six-time series champion, Dixon\u2019s best lap was 225.087 mph in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.<\/p>\n

“Pretty straightforward start to Indy 500 prep,\u201d said Newgarden, a 35-year-old native of Nashville, Tenn., and Indy 500 champ in 2023 and 2024. \u201cWe turned a lot of laps in the Shell Fuel Rewards Chevy and were able to get through quite a bit of our list for the day. The weather is going to be all over the map so we’ll have to be ready for anything, but that\u2019s what Indy is all about.”<\/p>\n

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Kyle Kirkwood – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Joe Skibinski<\/p><\/div>\n

All top speeds were produced with the benefit of an aerodynamic \u201ctow\u201d from leading cars. Kyle Kirkwood was the fastest driver running alone, turning a top solo lap of 222.062 mph in the No. 27 Sam\u2019s Club Honda of Andretti Global. Teammate and 2018 Indy 500 champ Will Power of Australia was second on the \u201cno-tow\u201d list at 221.455 mph in the No. 26 TWG AI Honda.<\/p>\n

FOX Sports pit reporter Jack Harvey of Great Britain returned to the cockpit and was third-fastest without a tow at 220.853 mph in the No. 24 DRR INVST Chevrolet of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. That lap validated Harvey\u2019s performance without aerodynamic help in the Open Test, when he was fastest both days on the \u201cno-tow\u201d list.<\/p>\n

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Pato O’Ward – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Matt Fraver<\/p><\/div>\n

Pato O\u2019Ward placed 12th<\/sup> in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet at 223.740 mph after 78 laps. O’Ward has finished second in the Indy 500 twice, logging runner-up finishes in 2022 and 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst day in the books for the Indy 500,\u201d said O\u2019Ward, a 27-year-old native of Mexico with family ties to San Antonio, Texas. \u201cWe were focused on traffic running today. We have some work to do but plenty of practice time left. It’s nice to see that the day was smooth, and we’re just going to keep working at it.”<\/p>\n

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Helio Castroneves – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Chris Owens<\/p><\/div>\n

Four-time Indy 500 champion Helio Castroneves completed 55 laps in his No. 06 Cleveland Cliffs Honda fielded by Meyer Shank Racing\/with Curb Agajanian at 223.332 mph. The Indy 500 is scheduled to be the only start of the 2026 season for the popular Brazilian, who, coincidentally, turned 51 on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Dallas resident Santino Ferrucci led the two-car contingent from Waller, Texas-based A.J. Foyt Racing in 18th<\/sup> at 222.930 mph in the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet. Teammate and series rookie Caio Collet of Brazil was 30th<\/sup> at 220.906 mph in the No. 4 Combitrans Amazona Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

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Christian Lundgaard – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Joe Skibinski<\/p><\/div>\n

Christian Lundgaard, winner of Saturday\u2019s Sonsio Grand Prix on the 2.439-mile\/14-turn IMS Road-Course, was 28th<\/sup> at 221.116 mph in the No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

\u201cLong day, hot day,\u201d said Lundgaard, a 24-year-old native of Denmark. \u201cIt was an interesting start to practice days. We started out the day very well and got loose suddenly. We went back and checked things out, worked on the car and then things felt fine. During the race running, we’re struggling a bit to find out where the understeer is coming from, but we’ll figure it out and I’m sure be in a better position tomorrow.”<\/p>\n

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Mick Schumacher – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Titus Slaughter<\/p><\/div>\n

Series rookie Mick Schumacher of Switzerland began prepping for his second career oval-track race with a best lap of 220.280 mph in the No. 47 ENVE Honda fielded by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an entertaining day,\u201d said Schumacher, the 27-year-old son of seven-time Formula One World Driving Champion Michael Schumacher of Germany. \u201cFor sure, we had a lot of stuff going on throughout the day. We hoped we would end up with a better feeling but it was just not there. We will regroup and come back tomorrow with hopefully, a better understanding of what we need to do.<\/p>\n

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Katherine Legge – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Chris Jones<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cOverall, I\u2019m still happy to be able to run and I really appreciate the hard work everybody puts in. Its great having Andy (Brown) on the car and everybody on the on the No. 47 crew is doing an amazing job throughout the season. I\u2019m very excited for this month and everything I am experiencing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katherine Legge of Great Britain _ the lone woman entered in this year\u2019s event _ returned to IMS in 33rd<\/sup> after a best lap of 218.304 mph in the No. 11 e.l.f. Cosmetics Chevrolet fielded by HMD Motorsports\/with A.J. Foyt Racing.<\/p>\n

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Katherine Legge – Indianapolis 500 Practice – Photo by Joe Skibinski<\/p><\/div>\n

All 33 cars entered this year were on track under sunny skies and air temperatures in the mid- to upper 70s, combining to turn 1,996 laps. Alexander Rossi, winner of the landmark 100th<\/sup> Indy 500 in 2016 as a rookie, was the busiest driver as the only competitor with more than 100 laps. Rossi turned 116 circuits in the No. 20 Java House Chevrolet of Ed Carpenter Racing.<\/p>\n

Practice is scheduled to resume from noon-6 p.m. (EDT) Wednesday (noon-4 p.m., FS2; 4-6 p.m., FS1; FOX One, INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls).<\/p>\n

The 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 24 (10 a.m. EDT, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX One, INDYCAR Radio powered by OnlyBulls).<\/p>\n

A massive crowd has been assured for the 110th<\/sup> running <\/strong>of the Indianapolis 500. All reserved seating for Race Day will be sold out for the second consecutive year, showcasing the continued and growing momentum fueling the NTT IndyCar Series and its crown jewel event _ \u201cThe Greatest Spectacle in Racing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Final reserved seating tickets will be sold today. In addition, reserved seat tickets will continue to be available on the IMS Official Resale Marketplace through Wednesday, May 20, at 4 p.m. (EDT).<\/p>\n

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May 25, 2025; Speedway, Indiana A general view of the crowds before the 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Credit: Michael C. Johnson<\/p><\/div>\n

Last year\u2019s grandstand sellout crowd was the first since the 100th edition of the race in 2016, won by Alexander Rossi. That announcement was made May 20, 2025.<\/p>\n

All badges and passes providing pit and garage access also are sold out. Limited hospitality tickets are available for Indy 500 Race Day. Available space remains in the Green Flag Club<\/a> and Performance Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In tandem with this historic update, event organizers also have lifted the local broadcast delay of the race. Expanded coverage of the Indy 500 on FOX Sports will start on Sunday, May 24, at 10 a.m. (EDT) across the country, with the green flag set for approximately 12:45 p.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnticipation for Race Day is approaching an all-time high right here in Central Indiana and across the globe,\u201d INDYCAR and Indianapolis Motor Speedway President J. Douglas Boles said. \u201cWe can\u2019t thank the world\u2019s greatest and most loyal fans enough. The stars of the NTT IndyCar Series are ready for an unparalleled showcase of speed, bravery and competition in front of a historic and massive crowd.\u201d<\/p>\n

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May 25, 2025; Speedway, Indiana A view of the crowd and pace laps before the 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Credit: Michael C. Johnson<\/p><\/div>\n

IMS is the world\u2019s largest spectator sporting facility, and the Indy 500 is annually the largest spectator sporting event on the planet, hosting a crowd of approximately 350,000 people. The massive grandstands around the 116-year-old, 2.5-mile oval will be completely filled on Race Day.<\/p>\n

While general admission tickets are still available in the IMS infield, fans hoping to attend Indy 500 Race Day are encouraged to purchase their tickets now by visiting IMS.com<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tickets for PPG Armed Forces Qualifying Weekend, Miller Lite Carb Day and other practice days are still available. Coors Light Snake Pit wristbands remain available to pair with a General Admission ticket for entry to EDM\u2019s most unique annual event.<\/p>\n

Fans can visit IMS.com<\/strong><\/a> and check IMS social media feeds for updates on all ticketing-related information. Remaining Race Weekend experiences are selling fast, and everyone is encouraged to purchase remaining inventory as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

NTT IndyCar Series Point Standings _<\/strong> 1, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, 237; 2, Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, 210; 3, David Malukas, Team Penske, 185; 4, Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, 182; 5, Josef Newgarden, Team Penske, 162; 6, Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, 148; 7, Pato O\u2019Ward, Arrow McLaren, 148; 8, Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 141; 9, Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, 141; 10, Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing, 123;<\/p>\n

11, Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, 116; 12, Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global, 112; 13, Alexander Rossi, Ed Carpenter Racing, 110; 14, Will Power, Andretti Global, 107; 15, Dennis Hauger, Dale Coyne Racing, 100; 16, Rinus VeeKay, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 94; 17, Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, 93; 18, Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Racing, 90; 19, Louis Foster, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 86; 20, Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren, 76;<\/p>\n

21, Caio Collet, A.J. Foyt Racing, 70; 22, Romain Grosjean, Dale Coyne Racing, 69; 23, Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, 65; 24, Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 55; 25, Mick Schumacher, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, 54.<\/p>\n

FOX SPORTS\u2019 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES BROADCAST SCHEDULE\/(RACE WINNER)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Note _ All times Eastern<\/em><\/p>\n

Sunday, March 1 _ Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., (Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing)<\/p>\n

Saturday, March 7 _ Phoenix Raceway, Avondale, Ariz., (Josef Newgarden, Team Penske)<\/p>\n

Sunday, March 15 _ Streets of Arlington, Texas, (Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global)<\/p>\n

Sunday, March 29 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing)<\/p>\n

Sunday, April 19 _ Streets of Long Beach, Calif., (Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing)<\/p>\n

Saturday, May 9 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course, (Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren)<\/p>\n

Sunday, May 24 _ 110th<\/sup> Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Oval, 10 a.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, May 31 _ Streets of Detroit, 12:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, June 7 _ World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Ill., 9 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, June 21 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., 2 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, July 5 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, 12:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, July 19 _ Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn., TBA<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 9 _ Portland (Ore.) International Raceway, 4 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 16 _ Streets of Markham, Canada, Noon<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 23 _ Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., TBA<\/p>\n

Saturday, Aug. 29 _ The Milwaukee Mile Race 1, West Allis, Wis., 2:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 30 _ The Milwaukee Mile Race 2, West Allis, Wis., 1 p.m.<\/p>\n

Sunday, Sept. 6 _ WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., 2:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Note _ Dates and times subject to change.<\/em><\/p>\n

2026 INDYCAR NXT BY FIRESTONE SCHEDULE\/(RACE-WINNER)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sunday, March 1 _ Streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., (Nikita Johnson, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR)<\/p>\n

Sunday, March 15 _ Streets of Arlington, Texas, (Max Taylor, Andretti Global)<\/p>\n

Saturday, March 28 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Nikita Johnson, Cape Motorsports Powered by ECR)<\/p>\n

Sunday, March 29 _ Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala., (Alessandro de Tullio, A.J. Foyt Racing)<\/p>\n

Friday, May 8 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course Race 1 (Enzo Fittipaldi, HMD Motorsports)<\/p>\n

Saturday, May 9 _ Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road-Course Race 2 (Tymek Kucharczyk, HMD Motorsports)<\/p>\n

Sunday, May 31 _ Streets of Detroit<\/p>\n

Sunday, June 7 _ World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Ill.<\/p>\n

Saturday, June 20 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., Race 1<\/p>\n

Sunday, June 21 _ Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis., Race 2<\/p>\n

Saturday, July 4 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, Race 1<\/p>\n

Sunday, July 5 _ Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio, Race 2<\/p>\n

Sunday, July 19 _ Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn.<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 9 _ Portland (Ore.) International Raceway<\/p>\n

Sunday, Aug. 30 _ The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wis.<\/p>\n

Saturday, Sept. 5 _ Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Race 1<\/p>\n

Sunday, Sept. 6 _ Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif., Race 2<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Alex Palou sussed out \u201ca couple of issues\u201d to post the fastest lap on Opening Day of track activity for the 110th running of \u201cThe Greatest Spectacle in Racing.\u201d Palou turned a hot lap of 39.8342-seconds\/225.937 mph with less than 15 minutes remaining in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":678,"featured_media":58075,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[12],"tags":[824,230,421,125,22,672],"class_list":["post-58072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-indycar","tag-alex-palou","tag-indianapolis-500","tag-indianapolis-motor-speedway","tag-indy-500","tag-indycar","tag-ntt-indycar-series"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Alex-Palou-Indianapolis-500-Practice-By_-Walt-Kuhn_Ref-Image-Without-Watermark_m152783.jpg?fit=1249%2C720&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-f6E","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/678"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58072"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58072\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58096,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58072\/revisions\/58096"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}