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The IMS Road Course race kicks off the biggest month of racing for IndyCar – the introduction to 'The Month of May' and our first taste of action before the Indianapolis 500 weekends begin. The course is 14 turns, including part of the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway Oval and Yard of Bricks.

As with IndyCar's last time out, this track has shared a rich history with other racing series, including Formula 1 from 2000 to 2007, and Michael Schumacher, whose son, Mick, is in his first IndyCar 'Month of May' run.

This year's Indy Road Course race has faced a few setbacks, with Qualifying being moved to the morning of today's race due to severe weather conditions on Friday. In the last two times out around this circuit, Alex Palou has taken the victory, and heading into today's race, it was Palou who started on the pole.

After numerous incidents, it was Arrow McLaren's Christian Lundgaard who took home the first of two victories around Indianapolis Motor Speedway this year. This was his second-ever win in IndyCar and his first with Arrow McLaren. He was closely followed by Penske's David Malukas and RLL's Graham Rahal – Rahal's second podium of the year.

Race Start Chaos

The Sonsio Grand Prix rarely runs without incident, and that expectation held true today. On Lap 1, 6+ cars were collected into two back-to-back incidents, leading to ECR's Christian Rasmussen's temporary retirement a few laps later – he re-entered at lap 33 before retiring again.

First, Juncos' Rinus Veekay made contact in the back of the pack, likely with Rasmussen, sending him into a much-needed pit stop. However, it was at the front of the pack where melee ensued.

Meyer Shank's Rosenqvist locked up into Turn 1, pulling the cars of McLaren's O'Ward, Chip Ganassi's Dixon, AJ Foyt's Collet, and Andretti's Ericsson into the pile-up. All of the cars were able to be repaired and sent back out, with a drive-through penalty sent to Rosenqvist.

The day turned from bad to worse for Rosenqvist, though. On Lap 28, Sting Ray Robb collided with the back of his car, sending the Swede airborne and into Chip Ganassi's Kyffin Simpson. That was day done for Rosenqvist, the man who stood on the podium just a couple of weeks ago and who is a new father this week.

ECR's Terrible Day on the Track

After Rasmussen's lap 1 damage that left him with significant repairs to likely the gearbox and other parts of the car, ECR's day was already difficult. Even though the Danish driver attempted to return to the track nearly 30 laps later, that was day done for 1/2 of the team.

The more notable incident for ECR was the retirement of Alexander Rossi. Around lap 21 of the race, Rossi pulled off to the side of the course just over the yard of bricks with what appeared to be a Hybrid failure. Although there was an actively stopped car on the track with Rossi looking to exit, the marshals only called a 'local yellow'.

This means that Rossi was left to jump out of the car while the track and pits were still 'hot'. This decision was later reviewed, as many deemed this move dangerous for both Rossi and the other drivers still in the race. Regardless, this was the end of the road for both ECR drivers.

IndyCar Sonsio Grand Prix at Indy Road Course Results

Position Driver/ Team Time Diff from Lead
1. Lundgaard/ McLaren -
2. Malukas/ Penske +4.671
3. Rahal/ RLL +7.914
4. Newgarden/ Penske +10.029
5. Palou/ Chip Ganassi +14.363
6. Dixon/ Chip Ganassi +26.842
7. Foster/ RLL +28.127
8. Hauger/ Dale Coyne +31.933
9. Kirkwood/ Andretti +34.194
10. Siegel/ McLaren +38.844
11. Armstrong/ Meyer Shank +46.471
12. Simpson/ Chip Ganassi +50.190
13. Power/ Andretti +52.029
14. Ferrucci/ AJ Foyt +56.371
15. Veekay/ Juncos +59.585
16. McLaughlin/ Penske +59.870
17. Robb/ Juncos +1.00.167
18. O'Ward/ McLaren +1.06.285
19. Collet/ AJ Foyt +1.07.670
20. Schumacher/ RLL +1.14.129
21. Grosjean/ Dale Coyne +1
22. Ericsson/ Andretti Out
23. Rasmussen/ ECR Out
24. Rosenqvist/ Meyer Shank Out
25. Rossi/ ECR Out

Notable Finishes Up and Down the Grid

Naturally, with the racecraft that IndyCar fans have seen from Lundgaard during his time with Arrow McLaren, a first win with the team was coming. After a race that kept Lundgaard close to the front of the pack, it was a late race pass over Malukas that earned him only his second win.

Lundgaard wasn't the only 'big winner' of the day. Rahal has now scored his second third place finish of the season, confidently ending the podium drought that he has been entrenched in over the last few seasons.

Similarly, Rahal's teammate, Louis Foster, had a career-best finish of seventh, his first finish within the top 10 over the past two seasons at RLL. Just behind Foster, Hauger, this year's Dale Coyne Rookie, finished his career best of eighth.

In a month sure to bring the pomp, circumstance, racing, and excitement, these drivers must feel especially energized to perform their best when the pressure is highest.

The next race is the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 24th at 12:45 PM, although sessions will be live throughout the rest of the 'Month of May'.


This article first appeared on F1 on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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