World Formula 1 Champion Damon Hill expressed his thoughts on X, stating: “Insane! Incredible race. Indy did it again. Remarkable race. Chaotic scenes. Congratulations to Joseph Newgarden.”
During Sunday’s event, NTT Indycar Series champion Newgarden drove his Chevrolet #2 Shell Powering Progress Team Penske to victory, narrowly defeating O’Ward’s Chevrolet #5 Arrow McLaren by 0.3417 seconds. The lead between the two drivers changed hands four times in the final eight laps.
In the post-race interview at Victory Lane, Newgarden remarked: “I always believed we could win this race again. There’s no better way to win than like this. I also want to acknowledge Pato’s clean driving. It takes two people to make this kind of race work.”
Starting from third position, Newgarden became the first driver to win “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” consecutively since Helio Castroneves in 2001 and 2002, both representing Team Penske. This victory also marked Team Penske’s 20th win in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” extending their record.
Newgarden’s repeat triumph earned him a $440,000 bonus from BorgWarner, sponsor of the prestigious Borg-Warner Trophy awarded to the winner.
Scott Dixon, six-time NTT Indycar Series champion, secured third place in his Honda #9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing, closely followed by Alexander Rossi in the Chevrolet #7 Arrow McLaren. Current series champion Alex Palou rounded out the top five with his Honda #10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing. Despite the final 46 laps being caution-free, only 1.5079 seconds separated the top five cars, resulting in an intense finish.
Christian Rasmussen, the highest-placed rookie, finished in 12th driving the Chevrolet #33 Ed Carpenter Racing. Kyle Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, had a challenging start in his first “Indy 500”, finishing 18th in the Chevrolet #17 Hendrickcars.com Arrow McLaren due to a speeding penalty entering the pits.
Newgarden celebrated his victory in a familiar way for the second consecutive year, climbing the grandstands by the start-finish line, where he was enthusiastically embraced by fans.
The triumph was even more remarkable considering the absence of Team Penske president Tim Cindric and engineer Luke Mason during the Month of May. Both were suspended by Team Penske for two races at IMS after their cars were found to be in violation of the Indycar Push-to-Pass rules at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. Jonathan Diuguid and Raul Prados acted as substitutes for Cindric and Mason, respectively, during this month.
“They can say whatever they want from now on; I have no more concerns,” Newgarden said in response to critics after the violations were discovered. “I am immensely proud of this team. They dominated. Dominated. Luke, Tim – although not present today, played a significant role in this. I am simply filled with pride for everyone at Team Penske. This is exactly how I wanted to secure the victory.”
In the first 117 laps, there were seven yellow flags, making the race struggle to find a consistent rhythm. However, as the second half of the 200-lap race progressed, the racing became thrilling – and clean. In the final 70 laps, there were 32 lead changes.
The rookie Kyffin Simpson was the last driver on a distinct pit strategy to relinquish the lead with his final stop on the 184th lap. This set the stage for an extraordinary battle for the win between Newgarden, O’Ward, Rossi, and Dixon in the final 15 laps.
Newgarden took the lead on lap 193, with O’Ward moving up to second place. This paved the way for a series of bold overtakes between the two drivers in the last seven laps.
As the white flag waved in the air for the final lap, O’Ward passed Newgarden on the outside just before the start-finish line. O’Ward held onto the lead through Turns 1 and 2 and down the back straight, but Newgarden positioned himself behind O’Ward’s car and made a daring overtake on the outside of Turn 3 to secure the lead for good, capturing the attention and excitement of the 330,000-strong crowd.
“It’s hard to put into words,” expressed O’Ward, who also finished second in 2022. “So close once again. I took that car beyond its limits. There were moments where I thought, ‘This is it,’ and yet somehow I came out the other side of the corner. Oh man, it’s incredibly painful when you invest so much and end up just two turns away.”
This marked only the fourth time in the history of the Indy 500 that the race was decided by an overtake on the final lap. Newgarden also achieved this feat last year by passing Marcus Ericsson on lap 200.
This year’s race was a true classic, with a record 18 of the 33 rookie drivers leading at least one lap. Scott McLaughlin, the winner of the NTT P1 Award, led the most laps, with 64, before finishing sixth in the Chevrolet #3 Pennzoil Team Penske.
Additionally, there were a notable 649 overtakes on the track, the highest number in the “Indy 500” since 2017.
The next race of the NTT Indycar Series is the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear on Sunday, June 2, on the streets of Detroit. (Indycar Report)
© 2024
The sports world is in shock with the bombshell news that has just emerged. Backstage rumors indicate that one of the biggest current soccer players is about to change clubs. According to reliable sources, the star is unhappy with his current team and is seriously considering a transfer.
The news came to light during an exclusive interview granted by the player to our reporting team. He revealed that he has been receiving tempting offers from other clubs and is carefully analyzing all options. It is still unknown which team he could transfer to, but it is speculated that major European clubs are interested in his services.
The potential transfer of the player has generated high expectations among soccer fans. Many have already started speculating about what the star’s destination could be and how his departure could affect the performance of his current team. Furthermore, the news has also stirred up the transfer market, with other players being considered as possible replacements.
Despite all the speculation, the player has not given a definitive answer regarding his transfer. He stated that he is focused on his performance on the field and will make a decision at the right moment. In the meantime, fans will have to eagerly await more information about the star’s future.
This potential transfer promises to shake up the sports world in the coming days. Stay tuned to our next editions for more details on this developing story.
