Forty

That is the number of cars that, should all of them find pilots, will try to qualify for the 93rd Indianapolis 500-Mile Race.

All things considered, that's a pretty spectacular number. It has been some time indeed since we've seen this many available rides this early in the process. In the darkest of days, they would qualify 30 cars, then some magical voodoo work would be performed by Tony George and we would have 33 cars after Bump Day. Recently, we've had 32 or 33 in the field before Bump Day, then a few drivers would spend time tossing each other off of the starting grid.

Now, I understand fully that, in all likelihood, not all 40 cars will be filled by the time Bump Day rolls around, but the possibility of it is kinda fun to think about. Of note in the entry list:

-Sarah Fisher has spent her time well since getting knocked out last year by Marco and Kanaan's little tiff in Turn 3. She has two chassis for herself (67, 67T), plus another (68) that she will probably give to the highest bidder to qualify.

-Hemelgarn Racing is back! The old #91, which took victory in 1996 with Buddy Lazier at the helm, will be back. The entry names a fellow called "TBA" as the driver, but I think he will be replaced by the much more experienced Lazier when the gates open at the Speedway.

-KV Racing Technology has entered three cars. (5-Moraes, 15-Tracy, 8-TBA) Honestly, I'm not sure what to take out of this. Jimmy Vasser has stated explicitly that he does not plan to run the 500. Who gets the nod for the 8 car, then? I'll get back to that in a bit...

-Dale Coyne is feeling optimistic after the good showing by Justin Wilson in St. Pete. He's put in two entries (18, 19). "TBA" is listed as the driver there as well. (he gets a lot of nods on the 500 entry lists, it seems)

-A.J. Foyt Enterprises, as expected, entered a car for grandson A.J. IV (41). However, he has also thrown a third car (48) onto the list just for kicks. A.J. made a great move hiring Felipe Giaffone, who was out buying baby clothes, back in 2005. Maybe we see Giaffone, or someone like that, jumping into the #48.

-Dreyer & Reinbold, who are good at teaming up with other organizations to enter lots of cars, is one of two four-car teams on the entry list (the other is Andretti/Green, natch). The 24 (Conway), 43 (J. Andretti), and 44 (Hamilton) are filled, but it remains to be seen who will sit in the 23 car. The arrangement was supposed to be Darren Manning for the twisty tracks and M***a D**o for the speedways, but that's obviously up in the air for the 500.

-Roth Racing has two entries (25, 52), but Mad Dog Marty is (thank the high heavens) not listed the driver for either. I'm guessing Marty will end up in one of the cars eventually, but you never know. I couldn't begin to tell who would end up in the second car.

Drivers NOT listed in this group (that I can think of off-dome):

-Tomas Scheckter: His sponsor, Rockstar Energy Drink, decided to pull the plug on Tomas' ride with 3G after they decided 3G's part-owner Stanton Barrett was a bad driver and, therefore, had a bad team. I don't know about all that, since that's mainly down to Barrett's lack of skillz, but 3G has only put one entry into the 500. If Jimmy Vasser doesn't pull himself out of a hat and drive the #8 KV Racing car, I see Tomas getting put in there to make one of the most underrated three-car teams in the race.

-Buddy Rice: Dreyer & Reinbold's decision to drop Buddy and go with Mike Conway has obviously paid great dividends for them (check the points table to the right). I don't see D&R trying to make things right with the #23, but I do see Buddy's old boss Bobby Rahal giving him a ring and putting him in the #17. Remember, Buddy was Rahal/Letterman's most successful driver, taking the rain-shortened 500 in 2004.

-Buddy Lazier: As I mentioned earlier, I see Lazier getting put in his old digs: the #91 Hemelgarn car. Lazier gave this team so much success in the earlier years of the IRL, and I wouldn't mind seeing a nice, nostalgic reunion of those two.

-Arie Luyendyk, Jr.: Arie Jr. nearly put a car into the field in 2005, but he was bumped out by better car/driver combos. He also got essentially no practice that time around, which is probably what beat down his attempt. Perhaps he can take some time from his Indy Lights broadcasting and give the 500 another shot. Who knows where he'd end up, though.

-There are lots of others out there, like Giaffone, Alex Barron, and some other folks I can't think of. I have a feeling these guys could get looks at rides, and I also think we might see some Indy Lights drivers find their way into the race.

All in all, the 500-Mile Race is shaping up to be a good one, and I for one can't wait for that first digit in the date to switch over to "5". Heck, it even looks like we might have the first interesting Bump Day in many years -- maybe since 1995, when Team Penske failed to make the field.