[7] Track activity commenced on Tuesday April 29 with a refresher test for Jacques Villeneuve and Kurt Busch on the oval.

The track will be open on Monday May 19 from 12:00–5:00 p.m.[10] * Includes days where track activitywas significantly limited due to rain ROP — denotes Rookie Orientation Program The race had six former Indianapolis 500 winners entered, including two drivers returning for the first time in over a decade.

[13] Three-time Indy 500 winner, and four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti announced his retirement from racing in the fall of 2013, following a crash at Houston.

Former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kurt Busch, who took a rookie test in 2013, announced he would enter the 500 with Andretti Autosport.

[17] Previously, unapproved engine changes penalties incurred during the month of May at Indianapolis would be served at the next race of the season (Detroit).

Starting in 2014, IndyCar championship points for the Indianapolis 500, as well as the Pocono 500 and MAVTV 500 (Fontana) will be doubled compared to the other races on the schedule.

[18] The first track activity for 2014 was a refresher test involving two drivers, race rookie Kurt Busch and former winner Jacques Villeneuve.

Busch, who initially passed a rookie test in 2013, returned to the Speedway in preparations for attempting Double Duty.

A day earlier during the Grand Prix of Indianapolis, Hinchcliffe suffered a concussion after debris struck him in the helmet.

Thunderstorms closed the track for the day shortly before 2 p.m. E. J. Viso, driving in substitution for James Hinchcliffe, led the speed chart with Andretti Autosport teammate Kurt Busch second.

Ed Carpenter set the fastest qualifying speed of the day, leading the nine drivers who advanced to the Fast Nine Shootout on Sunday.

The second day of time trials set the starting grid for positions 10 through 33, and then featured the Fast Nine Shootout.

During the Fast Nine Shootout, Ed Carpenter became the eleventh driver ever to win the pole position two consecutive years with a four-lap average of 231.067 mph (371.866 km/h), the fastest qualifying speed since 2003.

Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Tony Kanaan and Scott Dixon led the speed chart.

One minor incident involved rookie Sage Karam, who lightly brushed the outside wall in the exit of turn four.

The teams of Takuma Sato, Will Power, Scott Dixon, and Helio Castroneves, received first-round byes, and advanced directly to the quarterfinals.

Dixon's crash snapped a streak of 1,733 consecutive laps completed at Indy, dating back to the start of the 2006 race.

Ryan Hunter-Reay led Ed Carpenter, Townsend Bell, James Hinchcliffe, and Hélio Castroneves.

[34] Then on lap 191, Townsend Bell crashed hard into the outside wall at the exit of turn two, damaging the SAFER barrier.

The red flag drew some mild controversy, but it was generally praised by most fans and competitors in the effort to prevent the race from finishing under caution.

Ryan Hunter-Reay led the field into turn one, Hélio Castroneves tucked into second, with Marco Andretti close behind in third.

The leaders started taking an extremely low line down the front and back straights, forcing their competitors to make passes to the outside.

[34] The top three cars stayed nose-to-tail going down the backstretch, at which time Hunter-Reay made a daring dive pass below the white line to take the lead going into turn three.

As the field came down the main stretch to receive the white flag, Hunter-Reay made a slingshot pass to the outside to again retake the lead.

His attempt to become the second driver to complete 1,100 miles in one day came up short when his engine blew later on at the Coca-Cola 600 just before the race's halfway point.

Long-time NASCAR play-by-play announcer Allen Bestwick, who has worked the Brickyard 400 since 2001,[38] made his Indy 500 debut for 2014.

Carb Day coverage was carried by NBC Sports Network, with Bob Varsha serving as announcer.

This was Buhl's only year on the broadcast, but he had covered IndyCar races (including Indy 500 time trials) on Versus for multiple seasons.

[44] 1070 The Fan broadcast nightly beginning April 29 with Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee, followed by Donald Davidson's The Talk of Gasoline Alley.

About two months after the race, veteran broadcaster, and former IMS Radio Network announcer Gary Lee died.