Ryan Christopher Hunter-Reay is a professional American racing driver best known as a winner of both the Indianapolis 500 (2014) and the IndyCar Series championship in 2012. He currently competes part-time in the IndyCar Series for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. In each accomplishment, Hunter-Reay became the first American to win since Sam Hornish Jr. in 2006. Hunter-Reay also won in the defunct Champ Car World Series twice and the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. In addition to his experience in Indy car racing, Hunter-Reay has competed in the Race of Champions, A1 Grand Prix, and various forms of sports car racing.

The 98th Indianapolis 500 was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday May 25, 2014. It is the premier event of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series season. Tony Kanaan entered the race as the defending champion. Ed Carpenter won the pole position, his second consecutive pole at Indy. The race was won by Ryan Hunter-Reay, the first American-born winner since Sam Hornish Jr. in 2006. Hunter-Reay held off second place Hélio Castroneves by a margin of 0.0600 seconds, the second-closest finish in race history. At an average speed of 186.563 mph (300.244 km/h), it was also the second-fastest 500 in history. Marco Andretti, Carlos Muñoz, and Juan Pablo Montoya rounded out the top five. Kurt Busch, in sixth position, claimed Rookie of the Year honors.