Josef Newgarden has won the Indianapolis 500 for the second year in a row after beating Pato O’Ward in a thrilling duel to the finish.
The pair traded places repeatedly after bursting past O’Ward’s team mate Alexander Rossi with seven laps to go.O’Ward seemed to have pace in hand to attack Newgarden. He backed out of a run at the Penske driver on the penultimate lap, then made his move as the final lap began. But Newgarden struck back, diving around the outside of O’Ward as they sprinted into turn three.
It was a dramatic end to an eventful race which was delayed by hours due to heavy rain early in the day.
Newgarden was in the thick of the fight from the start along with team mate Scott McLaughlin, who led the field away from pole position. After his final pit stop he scrapped first with Rossi and then Scott Dixon, swapping places with the Ganassi driver for several laps before he slipped back.
The win will come as an enormous relief to Newgarden, who was stripped of his victory in the season-opening race at St Petersburg when he was found to have used his push-to-pass system outside of permitted times. After the race he paid tribute to team president Tim Cindric and his race engineer Luke Mason who were among those suspended by Penske as a result of the infringement.
Marcus Ericsson, the 2022 race winner who Newgarden passed on the final lap to win last year’s race, didn’t make it as far as lap two this year. Tom Blomqvist spun in front of him at the first corner and Ericsson was unable to avoid being claimed by a crash which also eliminated Pietro Fittipaldi.
Dixon was involved in a hair-raising mid-race incident which eliminated Ryan Hunter-Reay. The two previous winners made contact on the back straight when Dixon moved to the as Hunter-Reay made to pass him there. Hunter-Reay spun through 360 degrees on the grass at top speed and recovered to the pits where he was forced to retire, fuming at his Ganassi rival.
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Race result
| P. | No. | Driver | Team | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Josef Newgarden | Penske | Chevrolet |
| 2 | 5 | Pato O’Ward | McLaren | Chevrolet |
| 3 | 9 | Scott Dixon | Ganassi | Honda |
| 4 | 7 | Alexander Rossi | McLaren | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 10 | Alex Palou | Ganassi | Honda |
| 6 | 3 | Scott McLaughlin | Penske | Chevrolet |
| 7 | 22 | Kyle Kirkwood | Andretti | Honda |
| 8 | 13 | Santino Ferrucci | Foyt | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 18 | Rinus VeeKay | Carpenter | Chevrolet |
| 10 | 20 | Conor Daly | DRR-Cusick | Chevrolet |
| 11 | 6 | Callum Ilott | McLaren | Chevrolet |
| 12 | 25 | Christian Rasmussen | Carpenter | Chevrolet |
| 13 | 27 | Christian Lundgaard | RLL | Honda |
| 14 | 31 | Takuma Sato | RLL | Honda |
| 15 | 14 | Graham Rahal | RLL | Honda |
| 16 | 26 | Sting Ray Robb | Foyt | Chevrolet |
| 17 | 17 | Ed Carpenter | Carpenter | Chevrolet |
| 18 | 15 | Kyle Larson | McLaren/Hendrick | Chevrolet |
| 19 | 32 | Romain Grosjean | Juncos Hollinger | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 06 | Helio Castroneves | Meyer Shank | Honda |
| 21 | 4 | Kyffin Simpson | Ganassi | Honda |
| 22 | 33 | Agustin Canapino | Juncos Hollinger | Chevrolet |
| 23 | 21 | Colton Herta | Andretti/Curb-Agajanian | Honda |
| 24 | 12 | Will Power | Penske | Chevrolet |
| 25 | 34 | Marco Andretti | Andretti/Curb-Agajanian | Honda |
| 26 | 19 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | DRR-Cusick | Chevrolet |
| 27 | 29 | Felix Rosenqvist | Meyer Shank | Honda |
| 28 | 8 | Linus Lundqvist | Ganassi | Honda |
| 29 | 28 | Katherine Legge | Coyne/WR | Honda |
| 30 | 11 | Marcus Armstrong | Ganassi | Honda |
| 31 | 30 | Tom Blomqvist | Meyer Shank | Honda |
| 32 | 23 | Marcus Ericsson | Andretti | Honda |
| 33 | 24 | Pietro Fittipaldi | RLL | Honda |
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IndyCar
- Andretti confirms he’s stepping down in charge of racing team
- Ilott gets first seat in Prema’s new IndyCar team
- Palou clinches third IndyCar title as Herta passes O’Ward to win finale
- Kirkwood takes pole for finale, Palou only 24th after penalty
- Ferrucci secures second Foyt IndyCar seat for 2025 alongside Malukas
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
27th May 2024, 1:15
I’m gutted for Canapino, he looked strong all month only to drop the ball (again) in the last pit stop.
But I watch Motorsport for the racing and this one fulfilled my needs more than enough. It was an absolute thriller. They were inexplicably aggressive all race long and it just condensed into those last 10 laps. That pass for the lead from Newgarden was spectacular.
I’m so going next year. I need to see it live!
Mariano (@mariano)
27th May 2024, 5:50
+1
Tristan
27th May 2024, 1:31
What a great race to cleanse the taste of Monaco!
Doga
27th May 2024, 1:33
That was one of the greatest races ever run and greatest passes of all time. Last lap, late in the stint with high deg, what a performance. Gutted for Pado m
Doga
27th May 2024, 1:35
*Pato
alex
27th May 2024, 1:51
Great race! We just got back from the track and after waiting in the rain we were treated to a banger.
Gutted for Pato but he was silly in trying to pull the pin 2 corners to early up against an overpowered Penske.
So many deserved Boo’s for Newgarden. Man is not popular with drivers or fans. Love to see it.
Don
27th May 2024, 2:19
A fantastic race! What a nerve wracking finish. Hard to know how you top that for excitement. Newgarden wins over $4M with the Borg Warner bonus. O’Ward’s car was so sketchy it’s amazing he didn’t crash at the end.
SjaakFoo (@sjaakfoo)
27th May 2024, 7:35
That was a great race, glad to see the final laps went on uninterrupted and we got a fight to the last corner, what more could one ask for out of an Indy 500. Feel bad for Pato, I was sure this was going to be his year and the crowd was so into him winning, but well deserved in the end for Josef, stuck with it and never gave up the fight.
ASd
27th May 2024, 8:13
Oh my God that was a fantastic race! Intense action all the way through the 200 laps.
And Pato O’Ward, damn, he made that hard strategic decision not to overtake with then 2 full long straights (plus the shorter run to the finish at the finish straght) left to be driven to the finish line.
With the 2 full long straights left at that point, therefore 2 switcheroos, which left him just where was – behind Newgarden. He should’ve made the overtake :(
But hey, it’s much harder to make this calculation when you’re in the car. Or Maybe he did the calculation right, but was convinced he wouldn’t been able to overtake on the start-finish straight to the line.
MichaelN
27th May 2024, 8:43
Glad to see the finale was fun uninterrupted for once. Made up for the many interruptions earlier on.
Surprised Dixon didn’t get penalised for his swipe at RHR. Bit out of character for him.
Disappointed for O’Ward. He’d have made a great winner! And the fact the interviewer immediately referenced Newgarden’s DSQ says it all, really. As good as he drove, I don’t thinking he should have been on the grid this year. But it is what it is.
Craig
27th May 2024, 16:59
I have to admit I was absolutely amazed there was no yellows towards the end of the race as that’s usually where absolute chaos kicks off (must have used it all up at the start)
I think Dixon (and likely his spotter) were focused on Power who did move left a little. Don’t think there was anything malicious in it.
Andre
27th May 2024, 13:06
The ugliest race cars turn and turn around like workhorses. Almost infinite restarts let the luckiest win the carrot. Nothing to my taste very Americanish show flavored with randomness. That said happy for those who like and enjoyed it.
CD (@clipperdael)
27th May 2024, 13:40
An absolute cracker of a race, well worth staying up for.
Le Jimster (@lejimster82)
27th May 2024, 14:12
I think this is the first time I had the race on the entire time. I was routing for Pato, such a shame. The guy deserves it. He’s been so close a few times now.
Flying Lap
27th May 2024, 15:34
McLarens 2nd and 4th twice yesterday. That will be tough to repeat.
JJ (@jjfrazz)
27th May 2024, 16:03
It boggles the mind to see a guy who blatantly cheated on the entire field and on the series and on the honesty of motor racing then winning the Indy 500, let alone even being allowed to race in the series ever again. If it was F1 he would have been banned for life! Disgraceful.
MichaelN
27th May 2024, 16:47
Yeah, from some of the comments elsewhere it seems like there was quite a bit of booing.
Newgarden drove a great race. But this still leaves a bad taste. I think it would have been better for the series to bench these guys for the rest of the year. But then you get into the politics of it all, and the “problematic”, to say the least, position Penske plays in the Indycar.
Craig
27th May 2024, 17:00
Agreed
Radoye
27th May 2024, 19:03
F1 has had it’s share of cheating too, and i don’t recall any driver being banned for life because of it. So no, Newgarden wouldn’t be banned for life either.
Most likely a DSQ for the driver and expulsion of team from WCC points standings (which would cost them A LOT of money) would be the penalty.
And yeah, i agree Team Penske got off very easy for what they did at St. Pete.
Doh
28th May 2024, 15:33
In F1 Cheating and dodgy decisions are largely overlooked
Terrion (@terrion)
27th May 2024, 17:53
Dixon well timed his FCY. Shame Power ruined it a couple of laps later.
I’m not particularly happy with Josef winning after what happened in St. Pete, but he was so good. Especially the last lap maneuvre was amazing.