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IN Driver’s Eye included James Hinchcliffesix o’clock INDYCAR the winner will put you in the mind of a racer as you break down the nuts and bolts of the sport for fans.
Wow. Wow, wow, wow, wow.
I’m not sure what you expected from this year’s Indianapolis 500, but I’ll be honest: A record-breaking, hair-raising, crowd-screaming drag race to the finish line was way more than I thought we were in for!
As always, the Indy 500 didn’t lack for storylines. From the weather a constant threat all day long, to multiple red flags, to a split fuel strategy and a one-lap shootout for all the glory, the 110th Running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing had all the dramatic bases covered.
But I want to focus on something very specific. I want to talk about the last round.
I want to talk about how hard, dangerous and scary it is to drive on the outside of all four corners of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, inches away from another car going 220 miles per hour… with the added complication that your teammate is in the other car.
Enter Felix Rosenqvist and Marcus Armstrong.
Let’s start by driving side by side for a full lap. It’s not uncommon on a restart, when you’re still getting up to speed, to see a car hang it out through turns 1 and 2. Then, coming down to turn 3, there might be a big line checking up on the low lane, and maybe you can still hold it out there.
But when both cars are in fairly clean air—the leader had a solid gap at this point—trying to stick it to the guy on the inside is mind-boggling. Indy is a one-groove track once you’re up to speed, but I guess no one told Felix that!
There’s a reason every driver who’s driven around the 2.5-mile speedway applauded that last-lap move. We all know how incredibly hard it is to do.
Rosenqvist not only had to trust his car and his ability, but he also had to trust the guy he was racing.
(Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
The golden rule in motorsport is that you should not hit your teammate. When you and your teammate are both in a fight to win the greatest race on Earth, things get complicated.
Rosenqvist and Armstrong know the rule. But they also know that an Indy 500 win that’s within your reach doesn’t come every day, and you have to give it your all. The respect that both guys showed for each other was truly spectacular to watch.
Instantaneous, heart-pounding, future-determining decisions were made multiple times per second at 200 plus miles per hour.
For as impressive as Felix’s last lap was, you have to give Armstrong tremendous credit for how he rode the last 2.5 miles.
But the racing gods were in Felix’s corner. Indy, they say, picks the winner. Felix was the chosen one.
There was nothing Marcus could have done differently to come out on top. And by making sure he didn’t destroy his teammate, he didn’t have to answer any tough questions from the bosses when he got back to the pit.
[WHO IS? Indy 500 Winner Felix Rosenqvist On Fatherhood, Being Too Nice]
TALKING ABOUT NOTHING YOU COULD HAVE DONE ELSE…
What about David Malukas? Taking the lead into the first turn on the final lap, he would have checked his mirrors and seen the two Meyer Shank Racing teammates chasing him.
And that would have been exactly what he wanted to see. Cars driving side by side will not catch you as quickly as a single car in tow.
David Malukas after finishing second by 0.0233 seconds in the 2026 Indy 500. (Matt Fraver/INDYCAR)
Even with the ideal scenario, it wasn’t enough to keep Rosenqvist at bay. David did everything right – everything in his power with the situation he was in – to win that race. But when it’s not your day, there’s nothing more you can do.
He will replay the last lap 100 times and try to see if there was anything he could have done differently. But for a young driver struggling at the front of the biggest race in the world, he kept his composure, executed to perfection, but still not meant to be.
Malukas should (eventually) sleep well knowing it wasn’t his time, but a performance like that means his time will surely come.
The bad news for the Malukas is that the repeat of the ending is the thing and will be fodder for the highlights for decades to come.
We’ve never seen a final lap like that in Indy 500 history. We have never seen a finish this close in 110 years.
But instead of seeing it as a painful reminder of what almost was, I hope he looks back on it as a privilege to have been part of a history-making moment at the iconic speedway.
SOUNDS LIKE AN INDYCAR EXPERT
The Indy 500 had three key moments that set the scene.
The first was the strategy split on lap 130. The teams that pitted thought they could make it to the end in one more stop. Those who stayed out didn’t think they could get the fuel number and wanted to flat out rather than save.
Pato O’Ward after finishing fourth in the 2026 Indy 500. (Aaron Skillman/INDYCAR)
As the race progressed, it looked like those who made the Lap 130 stop made the right call as Rosenqvist, Pato O’Ward and Armstrong were comfortably ahead of the chasing pack of drivers who made the extra stop.
BUT … that advantage was nullified when the caution, and then the red flag on lap 192, came out for Caio Collet’s accident. It closed the chase pack right up to the leaders and brought everyone on an equal footing.
Of course, the final act came when the quick caution came out for Mick Schumacher brushing the wall in Turn 1 and leading to the green flag flying on the final lap.
What appeared to be a battle of strategy brains turned into a good old fashioned gauntlet to the checkered flag. It’s the kind of race that drivers and their fans love.
LIVE FROM THE STALL
You may have seen the clip of my pit mates and me on the last lap, the one where I used all the practice I had compartmentalizing emotions in the race car to stay calm and not miss a second of the action. I hope our broad reactions showed the world how much we all love this sport and how much we love calling the show these drivers put on for us every weekend.
I have to say: It was so much fun calling this race from the stand. After a marathon month, it was a real honor to be treated to a once-in-a-century finish.
And while I have you, shout out to the entire FOX Sports production team, who at every position on the team did an outstanding job bringing you all the action during a grueling May schedule.
1 TO THE ROAD
Scott McLaughlin, Pato O’Ward and Marcus Armstrong finished third, fourth and fifth in the 2026 Indy 500. (Doug Mathews/INDYCAR)
Now, while you’re watching the closest Indy 500 finish in history, you may have missed the wild finishes of third, fourth and fifth over the Yard of Bricks. Understandable, given all the breathtaking post-flag action.
But props to Scott McLaughlin for timing, to perfection, a run off turn 4 to go from fifth to third at the line. Just.
And while we were talking about the narrowest margin of victory in history – 0.0233 seconds between first and second – right behind them, third, fourth and fifth were covered by just 0.0115 seconds! After 200 laps, 500 miles, three positions were decided by inches.
Man, this race is amazing. I’m ready to do it again. Is it May yet?
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