[autotag]Josef Newgarden[/autotag] finally won the Indianapolis 500 in 2023 and wanted to be the first repeat winner in 20 years this year. Newgarden thought those hopes slipped away as Pato O’Ward passed him on the final lap; however, it was short-lived after he pulled off a remarkable move on O’Ward in Turn 3. Newgarden willed his way to victory, winning his second straight Indy 500.
Following the remarkable finish, the Team Penske driver got out of his car and celebrated with the fans. Then, Newgarden talked to the reporter on the front stretch about his Indianapolis 500 victory.
“Unbelievable! I love this crowd. I’m always doing that,” Newgarden said. “They can say whatever they want at this point. I don’t even care anymore. I’m so proud of this team. They crushed it. They came here with the fastest car and worked their tales off.”
ONLY IN #INDYCAR.
ONLY AT THE #INDY500.THIS IS — AND ALWAYS WILL BE — THE GREATEST SPECTACLE IN RACING! pic.twitter.com/NA0PxYhm5t
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) May 26, 2024
“(Suspended engineer Luke Mason) and (suspended strategist and team president Tim Cindric) aren’t here today, but they’re a huge part of this. I’m just so proud of everybody at Team Penske. That’s the way I wanted to win the thing right there.”
Team Penske issued significant suspensions before the Indianapolis 500 after its cheating scandal at St. Petersburg. Yet, nothing can take away from what happened on Sunday evening. Newgarden has won his second straight Indianapolis 500, adding to his stacked resume as a driver in the NTT IndyCar Series.
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