David Malukas was left inconsolable after missing out on victory in the Indianapolis 500 in the most agonizing fashion on Sunday. The 24-year-old driver appeared poised to win after passing race leader Marcus Armstrong on the final restart with just one lap remaining. However, when the legendary race concluded, instead of leaping from his car in triumph, Malukas sat in the cockpit, struggling to comprehend what had just transpired.
In the closing yards, Felix Rosenqvist surged past Malukas to claim victory in the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history. The margin of victory was a mere 0.023 seconds, making the defeat even more bitter for Malukas, who had also finished as runner-up in the same race last May.
The Team Penske driver looked understandably devastated at times. His father spoke to him on pit lane as Malukas sat with bloodshot, tear-rimmed eyes. His girlfriend, Kamila Jurkus, embraced him, attempting to console the distraught driver after the heartbreaking finish. Malukas buried his head into her shoulder as she allowed him a moment of emotion in the pit lane.
His teammate, Scott McLaughlin, paused the post-race news conference to give Malukas a hug when he arrived. Even the fact that he had moved up to second in the points standings seemed to offer little consolation.
If anyone understands Malukas's plight, it is Pato O'Ward, who has spent four of the last five Mays coming agonizingly close to becoming the first Mexican to win the race. O'Ward was also in contention on Sunday, finishing fifth after placing third last year and runner-up in 2022 and 2024.
Malukas had snatched the lead while Meyer Shank Racing teammates Rosenqvist and Armstrong battled wheel-to-wheel down the back straightaway and through the fourth and final turn. But Rosenqvist had just enough power to pull away from Armstrong and snake behind Malukas before making the decisive outside pass in the final 50 feet.
Malukas said he could not think of what else he could have done to hold onto the lead. "I just don't know what else we could have done," Malukas said. "We were driving 150 percent that whole time. We had the fastest car out there, loved that whole race. It was ours to win and I knew that, so I just never pushed like that my whole life."
The previous closest finish came in 1992 when Al Unser Jr. beat Scott Goodyear by 0.043 seconds. Rosenqvist's victory was his second career win in 120 IndyCar races and came after the recent birth of his first child. His last win was on July 12, 2020, at Road America, making this his first win on an oval. Rosenqvist joins Kenny Brack and Marcus Ericsson as the only Swedes to win the race.
The wild finish began with a red flag with seven laps to go due to a scary crash involving Indy 500 rookie Caio Collet. Flames billowed out of the side of his car as it skidded to a stop in the grass. After a 10-minute delay, racing resumed. Armstrong and Malukas sped past the top two cars—Rosenqvist and Pato O'Ward—but with 3.5 laps left, another yellow flag appeared when Mick Schumacher, son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, brushed the wall in Turn 2.
On the final restart, Lap 200, Malukas sling-shotted his way past Armstrong for the lead and started pulling away from the two Meyer Shank Racing drivers. But Rosenqvist finally caught the Team Penske driver to win the biggest race of his career in the same month he became a father.
"I was given two options: either I lift or I crash with Felix," said Armstrong, who finished fifth. "I chose to lift. I don't know if I could have done anything different."
