Rookie Alexander Rossi took the lead as drivers in front of him pitted with about four laps to go to win the 100th edition of the Indianapolis 500 on his debut in the famous race on Sunday.
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But as rivals ahead of him went back to the pits for a splash in the tank, Rossi drained the final drops long enough to win, his auto running out of fuel seconds later and rolling to a stop in the fourth turn. With talented mentors such as Bryan Herta and Michael Andretti, by race day Rossi confidence and composure was at its highest level.
Alexander Rossi, center, celebrates with vehicle owner Michael Andretti, left, after winning the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 29, 2016. And Helio Castroneves damaged his rear wing and had to replace it late in the race, hurting his chances of joining the exclusive club of four-time winners.
“It won’t sink in for a while”.
“The emotional rollercoaster of this race is ridiculous”, he noted.
“There were moments where I was stoked, moments where I were heartbroken, moments where I was stoked again”. No. 44 (for me) this year. Munoz only spent a few seconds in the pits, then tried to track Rossi down in the final laps.
It took Kanaan 12 tries to win the checkered flag. “I’m just so happy for everyone on the team”.
“I thanked Michael on the parade lap for letting me be here because I’d have been watching on television without him”. “We rolled the dice and came through and made it happen”.
Winner Alex Rossi running 179mph on the last lap, pretty much all alone on the main straightaway, is not how anyone envisioned this ballyhooed, banzai-fest ending. In five of the last 10 Indy 500s there was a yellow inside the final 20 laps. The Colombian appeared devastated after the race. The contact caused Bell to crash into Hunter-Reay.
In a rush to get back out in front, Bell and Hunter-Reay came together leaving both cars pointed nose first into the pit wall with minor damage, re-entering the race a lap down. But the 24-year-old Californian used fuel strategy to outsmart a handful of drivers who had the most dominant cars in the race.
“He honestly had no idea”, said Andretti. “I’m looking forward to going out there and see if it stays that way for the race”. “I hope it’s the big jump we need to bring the 500 back to where it belongs”.
“He did a hell of a job”.
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“This whole buildup, all the buzz surrounding this race, I’ve never been a part of anything like it”, he said.
