The advertising police gave the Indianapolis 500 a break. They looked the other way for years as this annual rite of speed continued to be billed as "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" when it clearly was not. The split between the oval-oriented Indy Racing League (IRL) and Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) prior to the 1996 season gutted this race. The 500 carried on, surviving on the fumes of past greatness and the hope that someday things would be put right again. CART tried fielding a race opposite Indy and failed miserably. The Indy 500 continued to be run on Memorial Day weekend, but it just didn't feel the same. Only now, with CART teams largely back and the IRL teams improved, does the superlative "greatest spectacle" again seem appropriate. It's about more than speed, although the slowest qualifier this year, Billy Boat at 226.589 mph, is quicker than last year's pole qualifier, Scott Sharp. It's about depth of competition. And this year, for the first time since 1996, the Indy 500 field includes the cream of competitors in domestic open-wheel racing series. It's not yet the heyday of the 1960s and '70s, when Formula One aces would compete. But the best of CART and IRL are here, and that should be enough for a spectacular show. That this day would arrive seemed extremely unlikely when the groups parted bitterly in 1996. But by May 2000, CART icon Roger Penske had seen a reconciliation as inevitable. IRL chief Tony George had the winning hand in this game of high-speed poker. "Tony George really holds the key because he's got Indianapolis," said Penske once during a stop at Nazareth Speedway. "He's got The Masters. He's got the Super Bowl, and people want to run there. "We're going back there with our tail between our legs. It's tough. When you go to see a sponsor, the first thing they ask is 'Are you going to run the Indianapolis 500?' " Penske's guys ran Indy later that month as CART interlopers, and Helio Castroneves won for the team owner they call "The Captain." Penske went the next mile this year, jumping his entire team to IRL and abandoning CART. The CART series soldiers on, but many wonder how long it will be until it must meld with IRL. For now, that reconciliation process is virtually complete as far as Indy is concerned. The field for today's race includes Chip Ganassi's Target CART team, as well as the Cool Green CART team. There are six former Indy 500 winners in the 33-driver field. IRL teams, stung by the fact that CART entrants have won the past two races, are determined to prevent a three-peat at this year's Indy 500. Consider them the equivalent of the former American Football League teams. Although a merger could be on the horizon, it would be nice to win the ultimate competition a time or two before then, if only for the sake of bragging rights. Sam Hornish Jr. looms as the best IRL threat. He and his Panther Racing team have dominated the IRL points chase and he starts today from the inside of Row 3. Other IRL competitors not to be discounted include two-time 500 winner Arie Luyendyk and 1998 winner Eddie Cheever Jr. Michael Andretti, a CART competitor who has the dubious distinction of leading more Indy 500 laps in history without winning the race, will be a sentimental story. The competition, the story angles, the drama are back at Indianapolis. For those who remember what this race used to be and who felt a sense of loss in recent years, it is time to rejoice. The 86th running of the Indianapolis 500 promises to restore lost luster; luster that seemed gone for good in the dark days of 1996. The thrill is back. We missed it.

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