Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews can be seen here and in the Cruisin’ News, "Oregon, Nevada and California's classic auto news & marketplace."
The Indianapolis 500 was run for the 110th time on May 24. Mark Glover was attending his 61st 500, and here's his take on a memorable race:
My pre-race blog post mentioned the myriad variables that can crown or crush a competitor in the Indianapolis 500. Well, there were a ton of variables in Sunday's race. A couple of them pushed pre-race favorite Alex Palou to the sidelines. Others set the table for a Swedish champion who drove a winning lap for the ages.
Palou seemed to be biding his time for three-quarters of the race, playing tag with various competitors at the front. Alas, with less than 100 miles to go, he found himself needing an extra pit stop (caution periods helped skew his strategy), while other competitors were locked in for the finish.
When the last of the caution flags flew, the three major players learned that the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 would be decided on a final, one-lap shootout. The massive throng of spectators gasped, and rightly so. When the green flag signaled lap 200, Malukas found himself in front, with Armstrong and Rosenqvist locked in a battle for second.
But it was more than that. As the trio rocketed into Turn One, Malukas was at the point, but incredibly, Armstrong and Rosenqvist were locked in a prolonged side-by-side battle, with Rosenqvist hugging the outside lane, a soft pickleball lob from the wall. As I watched the cars blaze onto the backstretch, I thought: Malukas has it in the bag.
Two cars fighting over second place instead of making a single-line draft charge to catch Malukas sealed it for the American in my mind. And I also feared for Rosenqvist. Driving flat-out on the often-slippery outside lane was flirting with disaster. I thought: I hope Felix doesn't hurt himself in a violent crash.
But then, coming around the fourth and final turn, Rosenqvist was somehow still there, and coming down the stretch to the checkered flag, he again darts to the outside and draws even with Malukas. I was blown away. Malukas wisely blocked the inside line, the preferred passing line coming to the finish. No way Rosenqvist is going to make this stick, I thought.
Until he did. The Swede bolts to victory by perhaps the length of an elementary school ruler ... or 0.0233 of a second if you are keeping score.
How brave was that last, foot-to-the-floor run in the outside lane on the last lap? At the victory banquet on Monday, fellow drivers couldn't stop talking about it. These are drivers who routinely drive in gridlocked traffic at 220 miles per hour. They have seen it all, and yet, Rosenqvist's incredibly risky, skillful move left them open-mouthed.
From my perspective, Rosenqvist's final charge was the most astonishing, consequential single lap driven in the storied history of the 500-mile race.
It earned him a check of more than $4 million, plus other prizes. But for me, it ranked as a memory that I will carry with me for the rest of my days.
