Felix Rosenqvist passed David Malukas in a photo finish to win the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500. Just 0.0233 seconds separated the first and second-place finishers.
It was Rosenqvist's first Indy 500 win. He said it was how he always pictured it.
"It was almost like muscle memory when it happened, because I’ve been dreaming about that last lap move, and it's kind of weird, you never really get that last lap move in the 500 and it just played out perfectly,” he said.
He raced for Meyer Shank Racing, driving the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda, and it was that team's second win. The team previously won in 2021 with Helio Castroneves.
Team owner Mike Shank said his emotions were all over the place.
"I’m overwhelmed, be honest, because this, this place, for me personally, is everything, it’s, it’s my Augusta, it’s my Kentucky Derby, you know, like it for me personally, so, so proud of everybody,” Shank said.
After rain and several restarts, the race completed all 200 laps.
Rain triggered one of two red flags. The first, just more than halfway through, stopped the race for about 12 minutes. Scott Dixon was the leader before that stop.
A second red flag for a crash stopped the action with seven laps to go.
At the restart, Marcus Armstrong was the leader. Malukas then passed him to lead, and Rosenqvist made his move. The race ended in a one lap shootout between Rosenqvist and Malukas, with Rosenqvist taking the win at the final.
Malukas raced for Team Penske, driving the No. 12 Chevrolet. He has not yet won the Indy 500, and it’s the second year-in-a-row for him to come in second.
He said he was shocked and disappointed by the loss.
“I think that’s why it’s very emotional for me, because I just, I really wanted to get a win for this team and just want to be, you know, written across those history books, but everything happens for a reason," Malukas said. "So we’re going to just use it as more motivation, and someday maybe it’ll happen.”
The race brought heartbreak for several more drivers due to crashes and malfunctions. Out of 33 cars that started, eight did not make it to the final lap.
For the second year in a row the Indianapolis 500 sold out its grand stand seating.
This year the pre-race included some Indiana celebrities.
Indiana Fever basketball player Caitlin Clark was the Grand Marshal. The 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year gave the command for drivers to report to their cars ahead of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
After leading the Indiana University football team to an undefeated season and national championship, head coach Curt Cignetti drove the pace car.
And Indiana native actor Brendan Fraser waved the green flag to start the race as the honorary starter.
Contact WFYI All Things Considered newscaster and reporter Samantha Horton at [email protected] or on Signal at SamHorton.05
Source link ← Back to News