INDIANAPOLIS – While Roger Penske investigated the cheating incident that cost Josef Newgarden his IndyCar season-opening victory, Newgarden never worried about the security of his job at Team Penske.
He had much else to worry about, Newgarden insisted, and helping his boss understand how Newgarden illegally used extra power boosts to win the opening March race was a higher priority.
Penske, for his part, said he supported the 33-year-old from Tennessee and was working on a contract extension for Newgarden beyond this eighth season with the organization.
One way to secure a new deal is to win the Indianapolis 500, which Newgarden won on Sunday after a four-hour rain delay. His pass on Pato O’Ward two turns from the finish line gave Penske a record 20th Indy 500 victory and made Newgarden the first back-to-back winner since Helio Castroneves did it for Penske in 2001-02.
In contemplating his achievement — he now has 30 career victories and is a two-time IndyCar season champion — Newgarden went so far as to say “I’m grateful for the experience” in regards to the Penske cheating scandal. About six weeks after Newgarden’s victory in St. Petersburg, Florida, IndyCar discovered that the three Penske cars had an illegal version of push-to-pass software installed that allowed their drivers to use the power boost when no other in the field had access to the advantage.
IndyCar removed Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin from first and third place and fined all three Penske drivers, although Will Power never illegally used the role. Penske then suspended four crew members, including team president Tim Cindric, IndyCar’s top strategist who calls the Newgarden races.
“It has been a very enlightening experience for me, more so from the outside world. I know what I take from this personally. I know what it showed me, and I’m grateful,” Newgarden said. “I think it’s an experience that has to either break you or make you stronger.
“We are moving forward. We have never worked as much together as a group as we did this weekend, and I found that difficult to do. This is the most united team I’ve ever seen. I’ve never been better than this month.
As Newgarden repeated last year’s victory celebration by climbing through a hole in a fence to join fans in the stands, a devastated O’Ward sobbed inside his race car.
He was trying to become the first Mexican winner in 108 races of “The Greatest Spectacle in Motorsport” and instead ended up with his second runner-up finish in three years. In 2022 he was accused of not being aggressive enough to beat Marcus Ericsson, and last year he was too aggressive and destroyed while competing with Ericsson for the win.
O’Ward finished sixth in his Indy 500 debut and fourth the following year. So five tries and five near misses left him inconsolable as his Arrow McLaren Racing team tried to comfort the 25-year-old.
It was an odd scene for O’Ward, who admittedly wears his emotions on his sleeve but is normally the most optimistic driver in the paddock. On Monday, he announced on social media that he was feeling much better.
“I woke up today with a big smile on my face, feeling so loved by you all,” he wrote in a carousel of photos showing his post-race despondency. “I wouldn’t change anything about my journey so far. I know it will be very special the day my name is written among the stars and I can experience the magic everyone talks about.”
His face was tear-stained and his eyes swollen at the post-race press conference, but O’Ward was stoic. He said he didn’t need to watch the replay of the final lap to see what he could have done differently to contain Newgarden.
“I think that in a way I have cracked a code and I know how to position myself to win this race. I know I can win this race and I know I also know how to protect a good result when perhaps victory is not in the cards for me,” he said.
He was praised by six-time series champion Scott Dixon, a former Indy 500 winner, as well as Newgarden. When IndyCar took the victory away from Newgarden in St. Pete, the victory went to O’Ward, the initial runner-up, in his only win in five races so far this season.
“He led me excellently. I’m very grateful for him and the way he drove. He is a champion. He is one of the best competitors we have in this area. He’s a really nice guy,” Newgarden said. “Every time I talk to Pato we have great conversations and I think we have a lot of respect for each other.
“I’m grateful for the way he drives. He drove like a champion in this race and deserves a winner too, in my opinion. He definitely could have won this race. It’s hard not to win. I can’t say anything to make this easier for him. When you don’t win, it hurts. I’ve left here 11 times with a broken heart, so I know the feeling. Whether you are near or far, it is a broken heart. I can’t alleviate it.”
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