The 2025 Indy 500 was the 109th running of the legendary event. It brought with it chaos thanks to a 45-minute delay to the race after a light down-pour hit the track. But it wouldn’t be the only chaotic moment.
In a day of cautions and delays, Alex Palou came out on top. The Spaniard secured his first oval victory in style at the Brickyard.
While other drivers had strong performances or days to forget, Palou left the track as the sole victor, with the remaining 32 drivers considering their performances as not good enough. Here are the winners and losers of the 2025 Indy 500.
Winner: Alex Palou finally masters ovals
Palou has been the name in the spotlight since the start of the season. The Spaniard began his 2025 campaign in dominant fashion at the St. Pete’s opening back in March. The following four races saw Palou snatch a victory in three of them, accumulating a 87 point advantage. Heading into the month of May, despite Palou never securing a victory on an oval, he was one of the favourites.
Doubts began creeping into spectators’ minds after Palou was unable to secure pole position at the Brickyard a week before. However, the Spaniard made a late surprise overtake on Ericsson to claim the lead in the final 14 laps. Palou remained unthreatened for the closing laps of the race. In the final lap Nolan Siegal crashed. This secured Palou’s victory prematurely and marked it as his first victory around any calendar oval.
Loser: Marcus Ericsson comes short once again
Marcus Ericsson was hit with heartbreak once again as a runner-up, losing out to Palou during the closing laps of the race. The Swede has been under pressure due to a lack of results for his Andretti Global team. However, when Ericsson qualified within the Fast 12, just a year after fighting for his spot on the grid, hope began building. Ericsson slotted himself into P9 for the 2025 Indy 500.
When race day approached, the 2021 Indy 500 winner consistently ran at the top of the field with a strong strategy. The final pit stops occurred during the closing 30 laps. Ericsson managed exited pit lane ahead of both Palou and Malukas. The Swede maintained the lead of the race heading into the closing stages of the race. This was until Palou made an unexpected lunge for the lead, catching Ericsson off-guard.
While Ericsson attempted to reclaim the position, the laps were winding down and he was unable to overtake Palou. He was forced to settle for another heart breaking second place position. To add further insult to injury, Ericsson’s car would later be found to have breached technical regulations. Along with teammate Kirkwood, found in violation of the same regulation, he would be demoted to the rear of the field.
Losers: Alexander Rossi, Rinus VeeKay and Robert Shwartzman pit lane issues.
Pit lane incidents were becoming a significant issue, the first major issue coming from Alexander Rossi. He had been running at the front of the field, working on an alternative strategy alongside Simpson and team owner Ed Carpenter.
The Californian was consistently at the front of the pack until smoke began pouring out of his car. Rossi headed into pit lane in hopes to curb the issue. However, the smoke was fatal with the car igniting on fire whilst Rossi remained in the car. One of his pit crew members had got caught in the incident and had to receive medical care as a result. The incident naturally brought an end to Rossi’s race.
Rinus VeeKay was the next driver to enter pit lane and suffer from issues. As the Dutchman approached his brakes weren’t responding. This caused his Juncos Hollinger Racing car to lock-up, spinning VeeKay into the wall. The crash was terminal with the car unable to be repaired.
Rookie pole-sitter Robert Shwartzman exceeded expectations. He kept his PREMA car within the top 10 in the opening stint of the race. However, a fairy-tale ending for the rookie team and driver was unable to be achieved after Shwartzman headed into pit road. As he approached his grid box, Shwartzman realised his brakes weren’t responding. He was unable to slow down and subsequently hit several of his pit crew members. He received a pit strike and retired from the race, a disappointing end to the rookie’s Indy 500 story.
Winner: Takumo Sato
Sato teamed up with Rahal Letterman Lannigan Racing once again for his 16th outing at the Indy 500. The open test showcased Sato wasn’t to be ruled out with him finishing second and third on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Despite the strong start, Sato crashed out during the third practice. It was a heavy 90G crash where he sustained two fractured ribs and wrote off his car.
Two weeks later, qualifying commenced where the RLL team prepared a new race car for Sato to compete in. The Japanese driver qualified within both the Fast 12 and Fast 6. He ultimately lined up for the 2025 Indy 500 in second place.
The second-oldest driver on the grid ended up racing in the Indy 500 with two broken ribs after the 90g crash. This was already an impressive feat. Even with grid box issues during a pit stop, he was able to finish in ninth place overall. There’s still life in the old dog yet.
Loser: A not so ‘Perfect’ Penske month
Team Penske were under the spotlight in the lead-up to the green flag on Sunday with a breach of the technical regulations drawing unwanted attention to the team. Both Josef Newgarden’s and Will Power’s cars contained an illegally modified attenuator (an impact structure at the rear of the car). Subsequently, both the cars were denied participation in the Fast 12.
McLaughlin suffered from a heavy shunt in practice earlier that day, meaning he was unable to make the session.
The following day both the No.2 and No.12 were penalised to the back-row and hit with a $100,000 fine each. The biggest consequence came when both Tim Cindric and Ron Ruzewski were suspended for the 500, for the second-year in a row. McLaughlin’s car was impounded after the crash. It was found to have not contained the modified attenuator, meaning he was able to keep his position in 10th.
Just days before the green flag for the Indy 500, Roger Penske announced that both Cindric and Ruzewski had been dismissed from the team, providing another issue for the team to tackle.
2025 Indy 500 – Race Day
Heading into race day the team were hoping for redemption with their best shot of a top finisher being McLaughlin in 11th. However, things took a turn for the worst. When the pace lap finally went underway, McLaughlin attempted to warm his tyres before the green flag. But, with the track still slippery from an earlier down-pour, he lost control of his car. McLaughlin hit the barriers, damaging his left-front suspension and drawing a close to his race – before the green flag was even waved.
Hope was reinstalled with Newgarden working his way up to 26th by lap 11. As the race progressed the Nashvillian was in 10th by the halfway mark – 22 positions up. It was beginning to look like Newgarden’s attempt for the three-peat was still on. However an unscheduled pit stop flagged issues with the No.2’s fuel pressure. As Newgarden sat in pit lane, he slowly dropped down the pecking order. When he went a lap behind the leader, the Penske team called it quits and retired the car.
Loser: Kyle Larson
For the second year in a row, NASCAR champion Larson attempted the ‘double’; completing both the 2025 Indy 500 and Cola 600, accumulating over 1,100 miles in just a single day. A 45-minute delay meant Larson was on borrowed time when the race finally went green, with several other subsequent cautions meaning that Larson would be unable to finish the race.
Issues plagued Larson during the race when he stalled the car on pit lane, dropping his car down the pecking order. But, the worst struck on lap 91 when the No.14 wiggled on a downshift, which sent Larson into a spin and striking the barrier bringing the end to his ‘double’ attempt. In the midst of the crash, Larson’s car caught both Kyffin Simpson and Sting Ray Robb, drawing a close to both of their races too.
With plenty of time, Larson landed in Charlotte awaiting the beginning of the Cola 600 where he started second. However, bad luck continued to follow Larson in Charlotte with his Hendrick Motorsports car involved in a crash in Stage 2, leading to his retirement on lap 241. The disappointing weekend drew a close to what could be Larson’s final attempt at a ‘double’.
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The seventh round of the 2025 IndyCar season takes place at Detroit on the 30 May – 1 June.
Feature Image: Joe Skibinski, IndyCar Media Centre
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