Rookie Alexander Rossi Wins Indy 500

Alexander Rossi outlasted his faster rivals – and his fuel tank – for a stunning victory Sunday in the historic 100th running of “The Greatest Spectacle In Racing”.

While the rest of the leaders had to pit for fuel near the finish, Rossi and his team Andretti-Herta gambled, nearly coasting through the chequered flag with barely any fuel left in the vehicle.

“I knew to drink the milk, but I didn’t know how much to drink”.

If he had his way, Alex Rossi would’ve been competing in the Formula One Grand Prix of Monte Carlo on Sunday. Hed been in Monaco this time previous year, unsure of what his future held. “Unfortunately it didn’t work out for him”. Let us know your thoughts below, or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter!

The onus will fall onto the series and the speedway to be able to entice fans to continue to come back and watch the IndyCar Series.

Not that it’s fully registered yet, of course.

Still, Rossi wasnt exactly a factor in this race.

It will change my life.

“I’ll cherish the fact that at one point we were 33rd”, Rossi added. A native of California, Rossi was for a time the latest American prospect being groomed for potential Formula One stardom.

For Newgarden, third was his best career Indianapolis 500 result in five starts.

“It was obviously something I had to adapt to very, very quickly”, Rossi said Tuesday.

The high-rise JW Marriott downtown has a giant window cling saluting the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 with the slogan, “Epic Race, Epic Place”. “I was stunned then and am still trying to come to grasp with it. It is a race where you have to have everything go right and that’s why the race is so great, which makes it so special”. Over there it’s a lot more politics and it’s just not as fun. It’s fun racing, and after the St. Petersburg race (March 13) he realized that. I sit around and pretend to look important. But with the success of the Indy 500 today, could rising tides lift all boats?

Canadian pole sitter James Hinchcliffe, almost killed in a practice crash a year ago, finished seventh.

It marked the first win by a rookie since Juan Pablo Montoya in 2000. Gaga and 1969 Indy 500 victor Andretti rolled onto the track with the field of 33 drivers before Sunday’s race in a custom-built, two-seat Indy vehicle.

“So Townsend (Bell) helped me out quite a bit by towing me around for probably about 12 laps and Ryan (Hunter-Reay, the 2014 Indy 500 winner) helped me at the end by towing me for four laps”.

“I had no idea Id be in IndyCar, I had no idea Id be in the Indy 500, ” Rossi said. But a broken rear winglet made his vehicle a handful, and when the pits were delayed opening for an extra lap after the Sato incident, Rahal had to make an emergency stop for fuel only, then had to stop again. What can I say?

“No”, he chuckled. “I mean, I tried to turn off the air conditioning in the race auto, but I couldn’t find the switch”.

What happens from there remains to be seen, but Rossi admitted he stumbled through the victory lane festivities, including how to slip on the winner’s wreath.

Though many drivers aspired to win, Rossi truly spoke to the track.

“Every time I get in a racecar, I want to win”, he said. I’ve never worn a wreath before, either, but I’ve got it down now. I want to enjoy this moment, enjoy it with the people around me. “He was always the first choice”.

He will now also become the 103rd face on the famed Borg-Warner Trophy.

Sage Karam made hard contact with the Turn 1 wall on Lap 94 and Conor Daly and Mikhail Aleshin crashed in the south chute.

Rossi understood full well that it was strategy that got him this win. “It worked out at the end for them”.

Alexander Goot is a writer and producer for Fox Sports 1 in Los Angeles.