Josef Newgarden has finally won his first Indy 500.
The two-time IndyCar champion prevailed in a one-lap shootout with defending race winner Marcus Ericsson on Sunday after incidents in the closing laps brought out multiple red flags in the 107th running of the iconic race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The Team Penske driver and Henderson, Tennessee native passed Ericsson with less than half a lap remaining then held off the Swede to take the checkered flag at the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” for the first time. Newgarden also gave team owner Roger Penske his 19th victory on the legendary track he now owns.
“I wanted to win it so bad,” an elated Newgarden said. “I was emotional the whole last 10 laps, and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. … We are going to enjoy tonight, I promise.”
Newgarden, 32, celebrated by sprinting from his car, cimbing through the fence by the flag stand and running up the stairs to celebrate with fans sitting in the area.
Newgarden, who won his 27th career IndyCar race, had never finished better than third in 11 previous attempts at The Brickyard. Newgarden led just five total laps after starting 17th, the furthest back for a winner since Ryan Hunter-Reay started 19th in 2014.
“I’m just so thankful to be here,” Newgarden said after making it back out onto the track for a post-race interview. “I started out as a fan in the crowd. I just love this place.”
Newgarden and his team then converged in victory lane to start the celebration, which for Newgarden began with a bottle of whole milk.
Ericsson, of Chip Ganassi Racing, finished second, followed by AJ Foyt Racing’s Santino Ferrucci. Ericsson was trying to become the first repeat winner since Helio Castroneves in 2001-02
Pole winner Alex Palou rebounded from a collision on pit road to finish fourth and give Ganassi a second top-five driver, while Alexander Rossi, the 2016 Indy 500 winner, finished fifth for Arrow McLaren. The rest of the top 10: Scott Dixon, Takuma Sato, Conor Daly, Colton Herta and Rinus VeeKay.
One-lap shootout will decide winner
Crazy three-wide racing on the restart with five laps remaining caused a multicar incident and brought out first the yellow and then the red flag again. Marco Andretti, Ed Carpenter, Christian Lundgaard, Graham Rahal and Benjamin Pederson were among the cars involved.
Defending race winner Marcus Ericsson was leading when the yellow flag flew according to race control, who paused the race with just two laps remaining. Josef Newgarden was second, Santino Ferrucci third, former 500 winner Alexander Rossi fourth and Alex Palou fifth.
Race paused again after O’Ward crashes
Pato O’Ward held the lead over Marcus Ericsson and Joseph Newgarden when the race restarted following a red flag before Newgarden made a bold move to pass both and surge to the front with 8 laps remaining.
But the race stayed green for barely a moment when O’Ward made an agressive move of his own to pass Ericsson and chase down Newgarden. O’Ward dived way down to the bottom of the track to try to get by the defending race winner, but the move backfired as O’Ward went spinning up the track and into the safer barrier.
Agustin Canapino, who hit the back of O’Ward’s car, and Simon Pagenaud were caught up in the aftermath as race control threw the red flag again with six laps remaining.
Indy 500 on pause after Kirkwood’s scary crash
Felix Rosenqvist gets high loose and hits the outside wall before spinning back onto track and slamming into Kyle Kirkwood, who went for a scary ride. Rosenqvist’s front tire hit Kirkwood’s back wheel, sending Kirkwood spinning into the safer barrier in Turn 2 and then flipping, with his Honda riding the wall upside down as a tire flew over the stands before landing in a parking lot.
The mangled vehicle finally came to a stop back on track, and safety workers quickly emerged to check on Kirkwood and lift the car to help the Andretti Autosport driver climb from the car. Kirkwood gave the thumbs up to the emergency crew and waved to the crowd before taken to infield care center to be checked out.
The incident brought out the red flag with 14 laps remaining.
“I got on the wrong side of the wake, and the rear came out on the exit of the corner and i just hit the wall,” Rosenqvist said. “We had a hell of car, and I want to thank my team for giving me such a great car.”
Another caution changes race strategy for half the field
Andretti Autosport driver Romain Grosjean brought out the second caution of the race after sliding through the infield grass. Grosjean had been dealing with issues ever since his teammate Colton Herta made contact with him leaving pit lane.
The caution made for an interesting decision for the field about whether to pit or not. Roughly half the field, including first-half leader Pato O’Ward, came in for fuel and fresh tires, but those drivers will restart behind the drivers that decided to stay out. All drivers will likely have to make one more stop.
Marcus Ericsson restarted with the lead on Lap 156, but he was immediately passed by Josef Newgarden. Ericsson retook the lead on Lap 159, but it didn’t last long. AJ Foyt Racing’s Santino Ferrucci passed Newgarden for second, and then, on Lap 160 grabbed his first lead of the race.
Defending Indy 500 champ surges to lead
Another round of pit stops, another incident on pit lane, when Colton Herta made contact with his Andretti Autosport teammate Romain Grosjean as he was leaving his stall. Herta was issued a pass-thru penalty and fell all the way the back to 28th.
A new leader emerged after every driver stopped for fuel and new tires, beginning on Lap 130 of 200. Defending winner Marcus Ericsson, who had been steadily moving toward the front throughout the race, jumped the Arrow McLaren pair of Felix Rosenqvist and Pato O’Ward, giving Chip Ganassi Racing its second race leader of the day, following pole winner Alex Palou.
And two-time IndyCar champion Joseph Newgarden, who is searching for his first Indy 500 win, has also climbed to the front, surging into second after pit stops.
First caution brings calamity for a race favorite
The first caution of the race came on Lap 93 after rookie Sting Ray Robb – yes that’s his real name – got high off the turn and slammed his No. 51 Dale Coyne Racing car into the outside wall.
Robb, 21, has Sting Ray on his birth certificate — and he’s not named after the fish, either. His parents, who are Chevrolet enthusiasts, named him after the sports car Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, but Robb, who is racing in his first Indianapolis 500, is actually driving for Honda.
On the ensuing pit stops, early leaders Rinus VeeKay and Alex Palou made contact on pit lane, when VeeKay got loose pulling out of his stall, veered sideways and slammed into Palou, who was also exiting.
The race restarted on Lap 100.
Arrow McLaren drivers surge to the front after pit stops
On the second set of pit stops which began on Lap 62, two Arrow McLaren drivers got the jump on early leaders Alex Palou and Rinus VeeKay. Felix Rosenqvist stayed out a few extra laps after first Palou then VeeKay took new tires and fuels, and when Rosenqvist blended back in following his pit stop, he had surged in front of the Chip Ganassi Racing and Ed Carpenter Racing drivers.
The Swedish driver’s lead didn’t last long, as a couple of laps later, Pato O’Ward took the lead from his teammate. The Arrow McLaren teammates then executed a plan of swapping the lead every few laps to conserve fuel.
VeeKay settled in third place, Santino Ferrucci, of AJ Foyt Racing, moved up to fourth and Palou dropped back to fifth.
Katherine Legge, the only female driver in the race, had numerous issues with her Rahal Letterman Lannigan Honda and was forced to take the car off the track for repairs.
Good news, bad news for Chip Ganassi Racing stars
Chip Ganassi Racing driver Alex Palou, who won the pole, and Rinus VeeKay, who started second, traded the lead through the first 30 laps with Palou leading 18 and VeeKay leading 11.
Meanwhile, six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, Palou’s Ganassi teammate, was forced to pit early with a tire vibration, which he called “massive.” Dixon pulled down pit lane on Lap 27, about five laps earlier than he had planned, after plummeting from the top four to outside the top 15.
Palou came in for fresh tires on Lap 30, while VeeKay stayed out three extra laps, pitting on Lap 33.
A challenging week for Graham Rahal took another turn
Graham Rahal, who was originally bumped from the field driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing but then took over for Dreyer and Reinbold/Cusick Motorsports driver Stefan Wilson, had his No. 24 Chevrolet have a malfunction at the very start of the Indy 500. His crew worked furiously to repair the issue as the other drivers made their way around the track just before the start of the race. NBC’s broadcast later reported that it was a dead battery.
This is the first time in his career that Rahal is driving a Chevrolet; he normally drives a Honda but had to make the switch when he replaced Wilson, who was injured in a crash with RLL driver Katherine Legge, on Monday.
Rahal’s crew eventually sorted the issue and he got back on the track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but lost two laps. – Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY Sports
When is the Indy 500 in 2023?
The 107th Indianapolis 500 is Sunday, May 28. The green flag is scheduled to wave at 12:45 p.m. ET.
Indy 500 TV schedule 2023
NBC will air the race, with its pre-race show coverage beginning at 11 a.m. ET. The pre-race show and race can also be streamed on Peacock, with coverage on the streaming service beginning at 9 a.m. ET.
Indy 500 starting grid
Here is the grid for Sunday’s race:
Row 1
1. 10) Alex Palou, Honda, Ganassi, 234.217 mph
2. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 234.211
3. (6) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 234.114
Row 2
4. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, Foyt, 233.661
5. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.158
6. (9) Scott Dixon (W), Honda, Ganassi, 233.151
Row 3
7. (7) Alexander Rossi (W), Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.110
8. (11) Takuma Sato (W), Honda, Ganassi, 233.098
9. (66) Tony Kanaan (W), Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 233.076
Row 4
10. (8) Marcus Ericsson (W), Honda, Ganassi, 232.889
11. (55) Benjamin Pedersen (R), Chevrolet, Foyt, 232.671
12. (12) Will Power (W), Chevrolet, Penske, 232.635
Row 5
13. (33) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 232.689
14. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, Penske, 232.677
15. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, Andretti, 232.662
Row 6
16. (20) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, Carpenter, 232.433
17. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, Penske, 232.402
18. (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Chevrolet, Dreyer & Reinbold, 232.133
Row 7
19. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, Andretti, 231.997
20. (06) Helio Castroneves (W), Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.954
21. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, Andretti, 231.951
Row 8
22. (60) Simon Pagenaud (W), Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.878
23. (18) David Malukas, Honda, Coyne, 231.769
24. (98) Marco Andretti, Honda, Andretti, 231.682
Row 9
25. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, Andretti, 231.353
26. (78) Agustin Canapino (R), Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, 231.320
27. (77) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, 231.182
Row 10
28. (50) R.C. Enerson (R), Chevrolet, Abel, 231.129
29. (44) Katherine Legge, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 231.070
30. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 229.649
Row 11
31. (51) Sting Ray Robb (R), Honda, Coyne, 229.549
32. (30) Jack Harvey, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 229.166
33. (24) Graham Rahal, Chevrolet, Dreyer & Reinbold, no speed. Rahal is replacing Stefan Wilson, who had qualified 25th but suffered a fractured vertebrae in a post-qualifying crash.
Printable 2023 Indy 500 starting grid
We got one right here for you!
How many laps is the Indy 500?
The Indy 500 consists of 200 laps around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, totaling 500 miles
What is the race distance of the Indianapolis 500?
After 200 laps around a 2.5-mile track, the drivers will have totaled 500 miles each.
Who got pole position for Indy 500?
Alex Palou is the pole-sitter for the 2023 Indianapolis 500 after setting the pole position record with a 4-lap, 10-mile qualifying run of 234.217 mph. Here’s what you should know about the 26-year-old Palou. — Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
Weather forecast for Indy 500 race
The National Weather Service is predicting temps hovering around 80 degrees on Sunday. Meteorologist Kacie Hoover said temps will be in the upper 70s to low 80s, it just depends on cloud coverage, which she’s predicting will be partly to mostly cloudy. Hoover said she’s confident it will stay dry. A few isolated showers are expected east of Indianapolis, but she said there’s “not a great chance” it will move toward the Speedway. — Morgan Womack, Indianapolis Star
How long is the Indy 500?
Races often take about 3 hours, depending on delays such as caution flags and weather. The fastest race came in 2021 when Helio Castroneves finished in 2 hours, 37 minutes, 19 seconds. The other fastest Indianapolis 500 races came in 2013 (2:40:03), 2014 (2:40:48), 1990 (2:41:18) and 1991 (2:50:00). — Evan Frank, Indianapolis Star
Indy 500 drinking milk tradition
The tradition started in 1936 when Louis Meyer drank buttermilk in Victory Lane. According to a 2022 IndyStar story, Meyer drank the milk because his mother said it would refresh him on a hot day.
A dairy industry executive saw a photo of Meyer drinking the milk and decided to offer it to winners thereafter. The Indiana Dairy Association became an official sponsor in the 1950s, and these days every driver is asked what kind of milk they prefer — whole or skim — just in case they get the opportunity to celebrate with it. — Evan Frank, Indianapolis Star
Which Indy 500 winner did not drink the milk?
The tradition was put on hold for one year in 1993 after race winner Emerson Fittipaldi chose to drink orange juice to honor his orange groves. — Evan Frank, Indianapolis Star
What is carb day at the Indy 500?
Originally known as Carburetion Day, the event once was a closed practice in which race teams adjusted the carburetors of gasoline-powered engines. No Indy 500 car has featured a carburetor since 1963, but because the Indy 500 is steeped in tradition — you just don’t mess with it.
Carburetion Day was held on a random day the week before the race and not open to the public until the mid-1950s. In 1969, the event was held on Thursday of race week until 2005 when it was moved to Friday. So, now if you call in “sick,” you’ve got yourself a three-day weekend.
Carb Day gives teams and drivers the opportunity to “shake down” the car and make sure it’s mechanically sound as possible. Small chassis adjustments are also made. — Dawn Mitchell, Indianapolis Star
Katherine Legge Indy 500
Katherine Legge, a 42-year-old from England, is a veteran of several racing series who qualified for the 2023 Indianapolis 500 with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. This is her only scheduled IndyCar Series start this year, driving the No. 44 Honda with primary sponsorship from Hendrickson, a leading global manufacturer and supplier of suspension parts for the commercial transportation industry.
She has also raced in NASCAR Xfinity, Champ Car, Formula E and several sports-car series. — Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
Indy 500 flag colors explained
Here’s what each Indy 500 flag color means:
- Green: Go! Let the race begin.
- Yellow: Caution, signaling hazardous conditions. Cars must slow immediately and yield to safety vehicles until the green flag is displayed.
- Blue: the “passing” flag, signaling a slow driver to make room for a faster car to pass.
- Black: directs a driver to head to the pits and consult with race officials.
- Red: all drivers must stop, often because of an on-track incident or weather.
- Black flag with white X: A driver has been disqualified; officialshave stopped scoring the car until further notice.
- Red and yellow striped flag: a substance such as oil or water has made the track slippery.
- White: there is one lap left in the race.
- Checkered: the race is over. Did your favorite driver win?
— Rashika Jaipuriar, Indianapolis Star
Indy 500 winners
Here is the complete list of winners over Indy 500’s century of existence.
2023 Indy 500 pace car
A historic partnership that began in 1978 lives on in 2023, as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway unveiled this year’s Indianapolis 500 pace car Tuesday: a hardtop convertible Chevrolet Corvette Z06, the 20th iteration of the famous Chevy sportscar to lead the field of 33 to green and Chevy’s 34th 500 pace car overall (dating back to 1948). It’s the first time Chevy has used a hardtop convertible version of the Corvette as the pace car in the pairing’s history and the first generation of the Corvette Z06 to offer a hardtop convertible. — Nathan Brown, Indianapolis Star
How old are the Indy 500 drivers?
The average age is 31.8. The youngest driver is David Malukas (21). Sting Ray Robb and Christian Lundgaard are also 21. The oldest driver is Tony Kanaan (48), and Helio Castroneves is also 48. The average Indy 500 experience of the entrants is 7 starts. — Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
Indy 500 teams
Here are the teams in the 2023 race:
- Team Penske: Josef Newgarden (No. 2, 17th starting spot), Scott McLaughlin (No. 3, 14th), Will Power (No. 12, 12th)
- A.J. Foyt Racing: Benjamin Pedersen (No. 55, 11th), Santino Ferrucci (No. 14, fourth)
- Arrow McLaren: Pato O’Ward (No. 5, fifth), Felix Rosenqvist (No. 6, third), Alexander Rossi (No. 7, seventh), Tony Kanaan (No. 66, ninth)
- Chip Ganassi Racing: Marcus Ericsson (No. 8, 10th), Scott Dixon (No. 9, sixth), Alex Palou (No. 10, first), Takuma Sato (No. 11, eighth)
- Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing: Jack Harvey (No. 30, 32nd), Katherine Legge (No. 44, 29th), Christian Lundgaard (No. 45, 30th)
- Dale Coyne Racing: David Malukas (No. 18, with HMD, 23rd), Sting Ray Robb (No. 51, with Rick Ware, 31st)
- Ed Carpenter Racing: Conor Daly (No. 20, 16th), Rinus VeeKay (No. 21, second), Ed Carpenter (No. 33, 13th)
- Dreyer and Reinbold/Cusick: Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 23, 18th), Graham Rahal (No. 24, 33rd); Rahal replaces Stefan Wilson, who had qualified 25th but was injured in a post-qualifying crash.
- Andretti Autosport: Colton Herta (No. 26, 21st), Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27, 15th), Romain Grosjean (No. 28, 19th), Devlin DeFrancesco (No. 29, 25th), Marco Andretti (No. 98, 24th)
- Abel Motorsports: R.C. Enerson (No. 50, 28th)
- Juncos Hollinger Racing: Callum Ilott (No. 77, 27th), Agustin Canapino (No. 78, 26th)
- Meyer Shank Racing: Helio Castroneves (No. 06, 20th), Simon Pagenaud (No. 60, 22nd)
— Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
- 13 drivers are from the United States: Andretti, Carpenter, Daly, Enerson, Ferrucci, Herta, Hunter-Reay, Kirkwood, Malukas, Newgarden, Rahal, Robb, Rossi
- 3 drivers are from England: Harvey, Ilott, Legge
- 2 drivers are from Brazil: Castroneves, Kanaan
- 2 drivers are from Denmark: Lundgaard, Pedersen
- 2 drivers are from New Zealand: Dixon, McLaughlin
- 2 drivers are from Sweden: Ericsson, Rosenqvist
- 1 driver is from each of these nations: Argentina (Canapino), Australia (Power), Canada (DeFrancesco), France (Pagenaud), Japan (Sato), Mexico (O’Ward), Netherlands (VeeKay), Spain (Palou), Switzerland (Grosjean)
— Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
These teams use Honda engines: Andretti, Ganassi, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Meyer Shank, Coyne
These teams use Chevrolet engines: Arrow McLaren, Juncos Hollinger, Foyt, Penske, Carpenter, Dreyer and Reinbold/Cusick, Abel
— Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
Has a rookie ever won the Indy 500?
Yes. Here is who:
- 1911: Ray Harroun
- 1913: Jules Goux
- 1914: Rene Thomas
- 1926: Frank Lockhart
- 1927: George Souders
- 1966: Graham Hill
- 2000: Juan Pablo Montoya
- 2001: Helio Castroneves
- 2016: Alexander Rossi
First woman to win an Indy 500 was Marcus Ericsson’s engineer in 2022. Will she repeat?
Angela Ashmore had no idea she’d made Indy 500 history as she stood in victory circle at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as she watched Marcus Ericsson with a wreath around his neck take a few glorious sips of whole milk, then pour the rest down his face.
All Ashmore knew was an indescribable feeling of watching her driver win the world’s most iconic race. Knowing she had played a part in Ericsson’s victory, as his engineer, was enough for her, more than enough.
But weeks after the May 29, 2022 Indy 500, Ashmore found out the racing world knew something she didn’t know. Ashmore was the first woman on an Indy 500 team to ever win the race — in any position — in 106 years. — Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Indianapolis Star
Last Lap? Tony Kanaan faces mortality of IndyCar, Indy 500 career
Roughly three years after what could’ve been his last Indianapolis 500, Tony Kanaan is still here, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the sun splashing across his face as he talks to a member of the media, preparing for yet another try at this beautiful, grand race. And Kanaan is being asked what many people are curious to know.
“Is this truly the last time we see TK at IMS in the car?” Kanaan is asked.
“In the car, probably yeah,” Kanaan says. “But … that decision was made three years ago and I’m still here, so I’m not going to hold to it. Somebody (keeps) saying this is my last 500 of 2023. So I’ll leave it like that.” — Tyler Tachman, Indianapolis Star
From Alex Palou to Graham Rahal: 33 things to know about the 2023 Indy 500
To get you ready for Sunday’s 107th running of the Indianapolis 500, here are the biggest storylines, trends, topics, teams and drivers motorsports insider Nathan Brown will be monitoring on race day:
1. The good sign for Alex Palou heading into Sunday? Twice in the last five years has the winner of the GMR Grand Prix has swept the May races at IMS. Of course, those on-track performances don’t have much to correlate but momentum can certainly breed confidence and is an indicator of precision at the perfect time.
2. The bad? Only one of the last 13 polesitters of for the 500 has won the race that year (Simon Pagenaud, 2008). — Nathan Brown, Indianapolis Star
Contributing: The Indianapolis Star
