The results are in, and whole milk is once again the most popular choice among drivers set to compete in the Indianapolis 500.
The American Dairy Association Indiana has revealed the results of its 2026 Indy 500 Drivers Milk Preference Poll.
Each year before the race, Indiana Dairy asks the 33 drivers to choose which kind of milk they want to drink in the Winner’s Circle at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Options include whole milk, 2%, skim, or having no preference. Lactose-free milk is available upon request.
This year, 25 drivers chose whole milk, seven chose 2%, and one driver — Romain Grosjean — chose skim.
The winning driver will have their milk of choice hand-delivered in the Winner’s Circle by two “milk people.”
Drinking milk in victory lane after winning the Indianapolis 500 is a tradition that dates back 90 years.
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Louis Meyer asked for buttermilk after taking the checkered flag in 1936.
According to the IMS website, “With a cheering crowd around him, Meyer held up three fingers with his right hand, and in his left hand he held a bottle of buttermilk. ‘Somebody has given him a bottle of milk,” the announcer remarked nearly a century ago. “Well, that race would make anybody thirsty.’ Simple as that. And the rest, as they say, is history.”
There was a period between 1947 and 1955 when milk wasn’t offered to the winning driver, but the practice returned for good in 1956.
Last year’s winner, Alex Palou, chose whole milk. Indiana Dairy says he even requested a bottle for his daughter, Lucia.
