Replays of the last lap of this year’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge pop up often on social media. When they do – and this is not surprising – race winner Josef Newgarden usually tunes in; runner-up Pato O’Ward generally turns his head.
As both NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers returned Thursday to Indianapolis Motor Speedway for this week’s fall test, it’s important to note Newgarden did not strut and O’Ward did not sulk. Both appreciate their roles in one of only four last-lap passes for the lead in race history.
O’Ward just wanted a different outcome.
“Never bitter, man,” the Arrow McLaren driver said Thursday in the first official step toward the 109th Running on Sunday, May 25, 2025. “Just having a chance to race here is always such a massive reason to be grateful.”
Newgarden just wants such a moment for a third consecutive year, though he realizes it’s unlikely to happen that way. The other last-lap passes: Sam Hornish Jr. overtaking Marco Andretti in 2006, Dan Wheldon scooting past JR Hildebrand in 2011, and Newgarden overhauling Marcus Ericsson in 2023.
“Statistics weren’t on our side (to go back-to-back) either, and look what happened,” Newgarden said. “So, things change. Let’s see if we can do it again.”
Newgarden and O’Ward said the last lap played out in a manner they really couldn’t control. O’Ward took the lead coming to the white flag because his No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet had a big run in Newgarden’s draft. The driver of Team Penske’s No. 2 Shell Powering Progress Team Penske Chevrolet responded with an outside move approaching Turn 3 as he had the momentum to do so.
From there, it was a drag race to the finish. Newgarden estimates he’s watched the replay up to 25 times, and in a way each time feels like the first.
“The genuine answer is, I had no idea where I needed to be on the last lap,” he said. “Everything was instinctual, and I think it was the same for Pato.
“If you go back and pick apart that race and try to determine who did what at the right time, it’s hard to make that decision in the moment. You’re just kind of sizing each other up and you make your best guess, and I think that’s what we both did. We both acted the best we could in that situation.”
O’Ward has no regrets, and he doesn’t need replays to store the information he gleaned for use if another opportunity is presented to him. That brain has absorbed plenty, too. Remember, O’Ward chased Ericsson to the checkered flag in 2022, then was in the lead group last year when he crashed in Turn 3 with eight laps to go. He’s been right there a lot.
“I’m just ready, man, ready for another shot at it, basically,” he said. “Unfortunately, (coming up short) has happened more than once, so I know how to deal with it.”
Newgarden and O’Ward, along with Andretti Global’s Ericsson and reigning series champion Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, tested tires Thursday afternoon for Firestone. Earlier in the day, Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel completed the Rookie Orientation Program, required of him to take again because he did not qualify for this year’s “500” as a Dale Coyne Racing driver.
Friday, 11 car-and-driver combinations will test INDYCAR’s hybrid system that was first used in a series race in July. Newgarden, Ericsson and Palou will represent their teams while O’Ward gives away to new Arrow McLaren driver Christian Lundgaard. The rest of the participants include Santino Ferrucci of AJ Foyt Racing, Ryan Hunter-Reay of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, Alexander Rossi of Ed Carpenter Racing, Helio Castroneves of Meyer Shank Racing, Conor Daly of Juncos Hollinger Racing, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Rinus VeeKay of Dale Coyne Racing. Cars will be on track from 10 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m. ET.
Newgarden said there’s always things to learn about IMS, and this week is no different in that respect. As for watching replays of last year’s finish, he said it has been as much about seeing what others saw rather than reliving the decisions of the combatants.
“Just seeing the crowd,” he said, smiling. “We had this huge storm (before the race), everyone went away and then they literally all came back, and then it was an Indy 500 for the ages.
“When the drivers think the show was good, it’s about as good as you can do.”