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Josef Newgarden won the 2023 Indy 500, passing last year's race winner Marcus Ericsson on the final lap. Ericsson kept the lead off the final restart of the single-lap shootout after a red flag, but Newgarden had a dominant run off Turn 2, passing Ericsson on the outside to take the top spot. Jeff Gluck, Jordan Bianchi and more May 28, 2023 at 5:49 PM EDT Josef Newgarden won the 2023 Indy 500, passing last year's race winner Marcus Ericsson on the final lap. Ericsson kept the lead off the final restart of the single-lap shootout after a red flag, but Newgarden had a dominant run off Turn 2, passing Ericsson on the outside to take the top spot. He then defended his position to secure his first Indy 500 victory. The Athletic has you covered with the latest news and analysis from "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." (Photo: James Gilbert / Getty) It had a little bit of everything --- heart-pounding lead changes, danger and a final-lap restart that saw Josef Newgarden, a two-time IndyCar champion, finally won the Indianapolis 500 in his 12th attempt. He overcame leader Marcus Ericsson on the last lap. Ericsson was upset the race was restarted and reduced to a one-lap sprint. "It wasn't fair," he said. The race had a little bit of everything, including several red flags in the final laps, a terrifying crash that involved Kyle Kirkwood and a tire fly up over the grandstand and into the parking lot, denting a passenger car. When it was over, Newgarden ran into the stands and celebrated with the crowd. There will be questions whether the one-lap shootout at the end was the right thing to do, but you can't deny it was massively entertaining. Josef Newgarden won a dramatic 107th Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, which included three red flags in the final laps. Here's what you need to know: Read more here. 19th Indy 500 win for Team Penske, extending its record. Last win was 2019 with Simon Pagenaud. Josef Newgarden gets the better of Marcus Ericsson on the one-lap shootout to win the Indy 500. Ericsson, the defending race winner, was leading when the race was restarted with one lap remaining and led until the backstretch when Newgarden got a monster run to pass Ericsson. The Team Penske driver then fended off Ericsson coming to the finish to win his first 500. Three red flags in the final laps of the Indy 500 is borderline unprecedented, if I recall. Clearly, race control is trying to give fans a green-flag finish and preserve the final laps, but this is a relatively recent trend of doing so after "traditionally" running out the race under yellow when late incidents occur. Another red flag has put the Indy 500 on hold with three laps remaining due to a multi car crash that broke out as the field came to the green flag. Defending race winner leader Marcus Ericsson leads with Santonio Ferrucci is second. Drivers think the leader at the white flag will get passed on the last lap and they don't want to be leading. Keep that in mind after this next restart...unless there's a caution, of course. Pato O'Ward crashes hard after losing control and spinning up the track into the outside wall. O'Ward, who had just been passed by Josef Newgarden for the lead, was underneath Marcus Ericsson entering Turn 2 when he went into a spin. Simon Pagenaud and Agustín Canapino were also involved. The race was red flagged with seven laps remaining. Kyle Kirkwood was evaluated and released from the infield care center after a brutal crash that car saw his car flip upside down and skid across the track. Per NBC Sports, no one was injured after a tire went flying out of the track, just missing a grandstand and going into a parking lot. Inside the media center, the feeling of concern was much higher for the tire flying out of the track than for Kyle Kirkwood's flip. That speaks to the confidence in safety advancements brought by the aeroscreen and Kirkwood never losing consciousness. Thankfully, it appears the tire hit a car and not a person (at least directly, that we know of at this point). Had the tire flown into the stands at full speed, it could have been a tragic outcome Kyle Kirkwood was alert and awake as he sat on a stretcher upon being removed from his damaged car and placed into an awaiting ambulance to be transported to the infield care center for evaluation. There's been a terrible crash here at Indianapolis involving Kyle Kirkwood and Felix Rosenqvist. Kirkwood flipped upside down, but is conscious and speaking with safety workers. A tire appears to have sailed out of the track. Santino Ferrucci avoids a crippling time penalty and instead is only issued a monetary fine for a tire leaving his pit stall while making a pit stop. Had officials issued him a time penalty, his chance of winning would have been all but over. But he maintains his track position and will cycle back toward the front once green flag pit stops are completed. We've got a race with 25 to go and some frantic action up front. O'Ward leads, but has to pit again. Ericsson, Rosenqvist, Newgarden and Ferrucci should cycle to the front once everyone else makes their final stop. The strategy is now split, thanks to this caution -- which comes with enough laps remaining that no one can make it to the finish from here. Some drivers, like race leader Marcus Ericsson and Josef Newgarden, opted to stay on the track and keep their track position. They'll be forced to try and keep their spots on older tires until they make a final stop for fuel. It appears the top 12 cars stayed out. Others, like Pato O'Ward (who was having fueling problems) opt to pit. That will allow those cars to go hard and not worry about managing their tires, since they'll have to pit one more time before the finish. With 50 laps remaining, defending race winner Marcus Ericsson leads. In second is Josef Newgarden, followed by McLaren teammates Felix Rosenqvist, Alexander Rossi and Pato O'Ward. One caution has slowed the action, coming when Sting Ray Robb crashed in Turn 2; he was evaluated and cleared from the infield care center. Polesitter Alex Palou dominated the early stages, but his bid for a first Indy win took a hit when Rinus VeeKay spun on pit road and into Palou, damaging his car. Palou has rallied back and currently runs ninth. Romain Grosjean goes for a spin and brings out a caution with 50 laps to go. Marcus Ericsson has been leading this race while looking for back-to-back Indy 500 wins. How will this affect things? Pato O'Ward's team says they are unable to fill their fuel tank all the way, which means he's going to be shorter on fuel than everyone else. Rough break for a driver who has been in the top five for the entire day. As Colton Herta was exiting his pit, Romain Grosjean was entering his stall and they collided. A penalty could be in store for Herta. We've had an invasion of some sort of flying bug (gnats? bees?) descend on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It looks like the infamous New York Yankees-Cleveland playoff game. Where's Joba Chamberlain. Don'.Summary
Indy 500 results:
Required reading
Tony Kanaan speaks about what's next for him
What. A. Race.
Josef Newgarden wins Indy 500 for first time after dramatic finish, multiple red flags
Living legend
Josef Newgarden wins the 107th running of the Indy 500
A third red flag with two laps to go
Something to think about
Another crash with six laps to go
Kyle Kirkwood has been released from infield care center
No one was injured after the tire flew out of the track, Per NBC Sports
Everyone seems to be ok after the crash
Scary crash with 15 laps to go
Close call for Santino Ferrucci
It. Is. On with 25 laps to go
A restart is coming with just over 40 laps to go
Marcus Ericsson leads with 50 laps to go
Tough break for Pato O'Ward
Teammate collision on pit road
Bugs be gone