If there is anything that history has shown about the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, it is that the 500-mile race is unpredictable right up to the very last lap – and in 2026, that certainly did not change.
With the Kiwi trio of Scott McLaughlin, Scott Dixon, and Marcus Armstrong all starting scattered throughout the field for the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500, and with potential inclement weather on the way, the race was set up to be a thriller.
Race
As the drivers completed the Armed Forces tribute pace laps, and formed into the iconic rows of three around the Brickyard, it was clear drivers were looking hungry to get their name on the important Borg-Warner trophy knowing victory here could well change their life.
Immediately at the start, Alexander Rossi was able to sweep past Palou into turn 1, while Santino Ferrucci made easy work of getting past David Malukas. McLaughlin and Dixon were both able to make early moves forward, sitting in eighth and ninth by lap four.
Palou and Rossi started trading positions as both drivers elected to use the other for a tow to save fuel, with Palou sitting back ahead by lap ten.
After starting in an uncharacteristically low position, two time winner Josef Newgarden immediately started to climb up the field, and had made up six positions early on.
McLaughlin was able to get past Pato O’Ward into turn 1 and moved up into seventh place. Dixon remained in ninth, while Armstrong remained down in nineteenth after starting in sixteenth.
As Palou and Rossi continued to exchange the lead, Katherine Legge and Ryan Hunter-Reay both ended up in the wall on the back stretch, as Hunter-Reay spun on his own, while Legge narrowly avoided a direct collision but ended up getting into the inside wall.
While the yellow flag was out, many drivers elected to head into the pit lane. It was a brilliant stop by the ‘Thirsty-3’s’ for Scott McLaughlin, who was able to fly up the order to fifth place as some drivers elected to stay out. Dixon moved into eleventh, while Armstrong sat in eighteenth.
It was a nightmare stop for Rossi, as his right-rear wheel had issues. The team had to use the spare wheel nut, costing the American crucial time. He lost eleven places in his first stop and fell well down the order, a heartbreaking moment for someone who was competing up the front.
Rinus Veekay, Romain Grosjean and Caio Collett cycled through to the lead after electing not to pit under the caution. Upon the resumption of the race, Ed Carpenter and former winner Takuma Sato collided, leaving Carpenter in the wall and out of the race.
The race resumed on lap thirty-two, and Collett made no drama of getting past Grosjean to the lead. The local hero Conor Daly sat in third, and McLaughlin was making big moves to get past his teammate Malukas and moved into fifth, and soon was able to get past Grosjean for fourth.
Dixon had dropped positions to sit in tenth place, while Armstrong had moved into fifteenth, the highest he had run in this race thus far.
The biggest mover at this point in the race was Newgarden, sitting behind his teammates on lap forty-two and running in fifth, on the same strategy as everyone else.
Drivers settled into a rhythm by lap fifty. McLaughlin led the Kiwi trio in fourth, ahead of Dixon in eighth and Armstrong in thirteenth. Palou led from Daly, with Palou saying that his car was better than last year’s and that the win was definitely within reach.
McLaughlin headed into the lane on lap sixty-two, and another brilliant stop left him ahead of Daly on the exit. Newgarden made a huge move on the exit to get past McLaughlin into Turn 2.
Dixon, from seemingly nowhere, had a great stop and moved up into a net third place, behind Palou and Rosenqvist. He looked quick soon after and moved into second, and seized the lead from his teammate Palou on lap sixty-nine.
Dixon and Palou then began to trade the lead, a team tactic to save fuel and help each other out. McLaughlin sat at the back of the Penske train in sixth, while Armstrong sat on the verge of breaking into the top ten, currently in twelfth.
It became clear this would be a traditional fuel-saver race on lap seventy-two and word began to spread through the commentary that Dixon looked the most comfortable on fuel.
By lap ninety, it started to look like some inclement weather was on the way and that it could rain in the next forty-five minutes. The shadows over the track grew heavy, and as clouds began to form overhead, teams deliberated how to extend their strategy so they could be in the best possible position if the race was called.
Will Power did his bit to help those discussions after issuing a caution for a suspected gearbox failure, which caused the rear of the car to lock and sent him spinning and brought out a caution. At the same time, Rossi retired from the race after a suspected failure, with both cars leaving fluid over the pit lane. The fluid leak from Power’s car was so bad that the pit lane was closed while the AMR safety team cleaned up the mess.
For the Kiwi trio, this caution allowed them to extend their stints out, and teams accordingly adjusted their fuel projections. Radio communications between Palou and his team made it clear that he was slightly short on fuel compared to others as Dixon closed up to the rear of the pace car to try to draft and save fuel.
The lane re-opened on lap ninty-eight as nearly the whole field headed in for tyres and fuel. Dixon emerged in the lead yet again, while Palou and Malukas came out in second and third. McLaughlin sat behind his team-mates in fifth, while Armstrong sat further down the order.
Light drizzle began around lap 103, and the red flag was displayed on lap 105. Importantly, the race had run the required distance to be declared, and although this had not happened at this stage, Dixon was the leader at the time of the red flag. It had now turned into a waiting game to see what the weather would do.
After a twenty-minute red flag period for inclement weather, drivers headed back out, and racing resumed on lap 109. Dixon was swamped into Turn 1, and fell back to fifth as Palou and Malukas got through to fight for the lead. McLaughlin had fallen back from his teammates and was in seventh soon after the restart, while Armstrong had climbed up to ninth.
On lap 116, the caution came out yet again as rain was spotted at turn 4. The lap counter continued to tick down, and the race resumed on lap 126.
However, the race resumed for only a short time, as two-time winner Newgarden hit the wall through turn 4 after getting the kerb on the entry. This brought out the caution yet again, and can only be considered a disappointing end to what was a great race after starting twenty-third. He was treated for a contusion but otherwise was in good spirits.
On the restart, the leader, Malukas, fell back quickly as McLaughlin made a great move around the outside of turn 1 to move into second place, just ahead of Dixon. Two laps later, McLaughlin got his elbows out and made another bold move to head into the lead of the race for the first time this year.
Daly made a bold late-block move on Dixon on lap 135, prompting questions about Daly’s block was legal. This caused Daly to lose his momentum, and he soon fell back to sixth.
Armstrong, a quiet mover in this race, now sat in tenth position, just behind four-time winner Helio Castroneves. All drivers were now going at 100 per cent, with laps starting to average over 350 kilometres an hour.
Penske teammates McLaughlin and Malukas both came into the lane on lap 148, and McLaughlin was able to jump his teammate to emerge in net second place. Dixon headed into the lane three laps later and came back on track in net fourth place, just behind McLaughlin.
Armstrong, on a different strategy, was relying on a caution as he went long to save fuel and try to make it on one more stop.
The race soon quietened down as drivers attempted to preserve fuel while holding track position. Palou, Malukas and McLaughlin all traded the net lead, with talk that rain was soon closing in down on the track. Armstrong was doing a great job of extending his fuel and was one of the last drivers on the alternative strategy to head into the lane.
Rookie Dennis Hauger, who was one of the lead cars on the alternative strategy, received a drive through penalty for speeding into the pitlane, ruling him out of potential contention after a good race.
With thirty laps to go, McLaughlin was the lead Kiwi in third place, ahead of Dixon who had fallen back to ninth, just ahead of Armstrong in tenth.
Malukas was the first of the leaders to pit on lap 176, and was followed in by McLaughlin and Palou on lap 177. Dixon and Armstrong cycled up to third and fourth, trying to extend that little bit more before the end. Armstrong soon was able to come within two seconds of the leader, firmly making himself known in the strategy fight.
Drivers began exchanging the lead as Rosenqvist and O’Ward traded positions while saving fuel. At the same time, Malukas led the main strategy race, with McLaughin and Dixon stuck in traffic, leaving them eleventh and sixteenth with fifteen to go.
With ten laps to go, Rosenqvist led from O’Ward, with Armstrong sitting in third. A fair distance back sat Malukas, with the next Kiwi being McLaughlin in tenth.
A huge crash for rookie Caio Collett left his car partially on fire, with the right rear destroyed, bringing out the red flag and changing the race’s trajectory. He was assisted out of the car and, thankfully, gave the crowd a thumbs-up as he left the track in the medical car.
With six to go, lapped cars headed into the lane as lead drivers were instructed that no fuel save was required and that they could push until the end. The green flag dropped with four laps to go, and it was hectic right away.
After a quiet day for Armstrong, he was able to triumphantly sweep into the lead in Turn 1, and held it until a caution was brought out for a potential incident.
After 199 laps, it was going to come down to the last lap – with a Kiwi firm in the mix.
On the restart, Armstrong held the lead ahead of Malukas and Rosenqvist, with McLaughlin in sixth and Dixon in fourteenth.
Armstrong took the opportunity to go early in the restart zone, where Malukas was able to get past in Turn 1. It quickly became a drag race between Malukas, Rosenqvist, O’Ward, and Armstrong, and although Malukas had a sizeable lead into Turn 3, Rosenqvist was able to drag race Malukas to the finish line to come home with the win in the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history.
After having the win so close to him, it was a gutting finish for Armstrong. After a quiet day’s work, his race came alive in the last 40 laps and was firmly in the mix until the end.
McLaughlin came home in third as the lead Kiwi at the end, ahead of Armstrong in fifth and Dixon in fifteenth.
Although the wait for a New Zealander to get their hands on Prairie Dairy Farms milk continues for another year, the Greatest Spectacle in Racing has certainly lived up to its name.
Header Image: Chris Owens/Penske Entertainment
