Marco Andretti said Wednesday he is retiring from racing, a decision that likely means the “Andretti Curse” at the Indianapolis 500 will never end.

The 38-year-old grandson of Mario Andretti announced on social media he will not attempt to enter the Indianapolis 500 next season and will instead turn his attention to his daughter, business ventures outside of racing, and a memoir in process called “Defending the Dynasty.”

Next year’s Indianapolis 500 will not have an Andretti in the field for the first time since 2005.

“I have had some really fun times behind the wheel in a lot of different types of racing cars — a lot of great memories as well, mostly at the Indy 500,” Marco Andretti wrote in his announcement, noting his start this year was the 20th of his career, good enough for 12th all-time.

“I am very much at peace with the next chapter in my life after dedicating three decades to the sport,” he added.

Marco Andretti also reflected on the Indy 500, his performances there and when he and his father battled for the lead in the closing laps of the 2006 race.

Marco Andretti was an IndyCar rookie, his father, Michael, came out of retirement to race against him, and Marco’s late pass of Michael should have been enough for the victory. Sam Hornish Jr. ended up chasing down Marco Andretti and the curse that dates to 1970 — the year after Mario Andretti gave the family their only Indy 500 win — continued.

“I am proud of my overall stats at the Indy 500. I had six very legitimate shots at victory with Andretti Autosport and ended up with 20% top-3 finishes at the Speedway,” Marco Andretti wrote. “It feels accomplishing to me to be able to retire having more podium finishes than my father Michael and the same as my grandfather Mario at the biggest race in the world.”

He added to his Indy 500 memories nearly being bumped from the field in 2011 and winning the pole in 2020.

“That is what the Indianapolis 500 produces: extremes on both ends. That is why I love and appreciate it so much,” he wrote.

Marco Andretti won two times over 253 IndyCar starts spanning 20 years. He debuted at the age of 19 driving for his father’s team, which is now known as Andretti Global but Michael Andretti was bought out of the ownership group at the end of last season.

Marco Andretti scaled back in 2021 to run only the Indianapolis 500 as he dabbled in NASCAR and other racing series. With Michael Andretti no longer an official part of the team, new owner Dan Towriss is under no obligation to enter Marco Andretti at Indy.

Marco Andretti’s final Indy 500 will go down as one of his worst — he crashed on the fourth lap as both Mario and Michael Andretti dropped their heads at another Indy disaster.

Despite the heartbreak at Indianapolis, the Andretti name is one of the most globally respected in racing. Mario Andretti won the 1978 Formula 1 championship, IndyCar titles in 1965, 1966, 1969 and 1984, and the 1967 Daytona 500 in NASCAR.

Mario Andretti is the only driver to win Indy, Daytona and an F1 championship. He is the only driver to win IndyCar races in four different decades and his 52 career victories rank third on IndyCar’s all-time list.

Michael Andretti ranks fourth all-time with 42 wins in IndyCar, just never at Indianapolis. He won the 500 as a team owner five different times. He won one title, was runner-up in the standings five times and ran 13 of the 16 races in the 1993 F1 season.

Marco Andretti only began trying other racing series after he stepped away from full-time IndyCar competition. The pressure on him to live up to his last name was enormous, especially at Indianapolis.

He reflected on his two decades in IndyCar as “competing at the top level of North American motorsport is and has been an honor for me, even in the tough times.”

“That is where I can look back and say I have made my best progress in life as a man,” he said. “Learning to navigate very difficult dynamics at times, and others doubting me, made me realize that my opinion of myself is the one that should matter the most.”

INDIANAPOLIS — Do you know where your taxpayer dollars are going?

That’s a question raised by some residents lately as several road and park projects begin across Indianapolis.

WATCH FULL STORY BELOW

Why these Indianapolis road projects are stirring questions about fairness

Last year, each City-County Councilor was given $1 million in the 2025 budget to be used for a park or road project of their choice. Most of those councilors chose a road project, but now people are wondering why certain roads were chosen.

“I’m trying to do it in the most fair way possible,” Councilor Michael-Paul Hart, who represents District 20, said. “I ultimately determined, you know, if I told folks that I was gonna put the money into parks and not roads, they wouldn’t be happy with that decision.”

Hart chose to resurface roads in the Forest Creek neighborhood, but part of that project will include a section of road that borders his home.

“There’s a constant improvement that goes along,” Hart said. “But there were just a lot of variables involved in this one particular case.”

We asked Hart his response to people wondering why he chose those roadways.

“I used data to pick the location, so there are multiple things that I looked at,” Hart told WRTV. “Here’s the PCI rating, here’s how old the road is, here’s where the projects already are… and then this is the place that makes the most logical sense.”

“I know that there are a number of communities around District 6 that need some repairs… but that was my priority,” Councilor Dr. Carlos W. Perkins, who represents District 6, stated.

Dr. Perkins is spending his portion on the Quail Ridge neighborhood.

“In walking through that community, I noticed, through my own observation, that the roads were in terrible condition,” he explained.

That neighborhood also sits directly across the street from Bethel Cathedral AME Church, where Pekins serves as pastor.

We asked Perkins the same question: What do you say to residents who want that funding to go to their streets first?

“They have advocated, they have been in touch with me, it’s been a communication through the last two years,” Perkins said. “And I believe that they deserve this investment.”

We reached out to Councilor Jared Evans to ask about his project in the Avon Creeks Estates neighborhood. Like Hart, his home happens to be on one of the streets set to be resurfaced.

We also sent an email to Councilor Brian Mowery with questions about his project, which will resurface a roughly half-mile stretch of Sunset Ridge Parkway, between Five Points Road and Moonstruck Parkway.

While not directly in front of his home, it does include resurfacing the road that serves as the entrance to his Franklin Township neighborhood.

Neither Evans nor Mowery responded at the time this story was published.

Construction on the projects is expected to begin as early as next month, with completion expected by summer 2026.

—
Casey Zanowic is the In Your Community reporter for North Side Indy. She joined WRTV in July of 2025. Casey has a passion for storytelling and is ready to showcase impactful stories that make a difference in her community. Share your story ideas and important issues with Casey by emailing her at casey.zanowic@wrtv.com.

INDIANAPOLIS — Personnel at the Indianapolis Zoo first noticed a pair of rare, endangered tortoises were missing after a routine morning count on Oct. 12. Zoo staff didn’t report the tortoises missing to Indiana State Police until 11 days later on Oct. 23.

According to ISP, the reptiles were snatched out of their enclosure in the desert exhibit sometime between 10 a.m. on Oct. 11 and 10 a.m. on Oct. 12.

Investigators said the thief stole an Egyptian tortoise and a Northern Spider tortoise. Both are critically endangered due to the pet trade and poaching, according to the zoo’s website.

“The tortoises are not the large giant tortoises that you see people sitting on and riding around on,” Captain Ron Galaviz with the Indiana State Police said. “These are actually very small, probably fit in the palm of your hand.”

Galaviz confirmed the timeline of events but zoo officials have not said why they waited so long to report the tortoises stolen. Former FBI investigator Doug Kouns suspects it may have been an attempt keep it out of the headlines.

“My first thought would’ve been an insider, and maybe we can keep this quiet, resolve it, get somebody to just return it, and maybe you get fired but no criminal charges,” Kouns, who runs the firm Veracity IIR, said. “Just bring it back, and we’ll let it go, but now that’s not the case.”

Kouns believes the most likely scenario is that someone took the reptiles to keep as pets, not realizing they were making off with some of the world’s rarest tortoises that can sell for thousands of dollars.

“I think the risk-reward of stealing a turtle from the zoo to make a few thousand dollars just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me,” Kouns said. “That said, it’s not impossible.”

Investigators said they are looking to see if any surveillance video caught the thief. They’re hoping someone will notice something out of place and come forward.

“They could end up in a pet store,” Galaviz said. “They could be in somebody’s personal aquarium somewhere that obviously we don’t know, (the) black market. I think the possibilities run the gamut.”

State police also confirmed that the design of the exhibit would make it easy for someone to reach in and grab the tortoises. Kouns said that will likely change.

“If these things were too easily accessible by the public or unvetted staff, perhaps they will shore that up a little bit,” Kouns said.

Investigators are asking anyone with information on the case to call either the Capitol Police at (317) 234-2131 or Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at (317) 262-8477.