Josef Newgarden defeated Pato O’Ward in an enthralling last-lap battle to secure back-to-back Indianapolis 500 victories.

McLaren driver O’Ward backed out of a couple of opportunities to overtake Newgarden before passing him as they began the final lap, but Newgarden still had time to retaliate around the outside of Turn 3.

He become the first repeat winner since fellow Penske legend Helio Castroneves in 2001/02, a feat that earned him an additional $440,000 bonus payment from sponsor Borg Warner.

Newgarden achieved Penske’s 20th Indy 500 win despite three key personnel on his car being suspended following the team’s internal investigation into the push-to-pass scandal that was uncovered earlier this year and resulted in Newgarden’s disqualification from the St Petersburg season-opener.

The race, delayed by four hours due to rain, distilled into a late battle between Newgarden, O’Ward, fellow McLaren driver Alexander Rossi and Ganassi’s Scott Dixon, in which Rossi looked best-equipped to beat Newgarden until a late surge from O’Ward - in a visibly wild-handling car - that nearly took him to victory but ended in a repeat of his 2022 close second place instead. That near-miss left him devastated.