Felix Rosenqvist stepped into the Month of May, reaching a significant milestone, becoming a first-time parent to his daughter Stella. Almost three weeks later, he ended his six-year winless drought and etched himself into the history books forever with a storied finish during the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500.

Rosenqvist took his first IndyCar victory during his rookie season in 2020 at Road America. Unbeknownst to him, it would be the only victory to his name for seven years.

While he secured podium finishes during his tenure at Arrow McLaren, he was unable to take the top step. For 2024 and beyond, he signed a multi-year contract with Meyer Shank Racing, and with the signing, he helped boost the team’s performance, as the Swede secured the team’s first-ever pole position at Long Beach. 

But the performance dropped off, as Rosenqvist had hit a mid-season slump. He had a weekend to forget in Indianapolis, where he was affected by a mechanical issue and finished 24th. As the season progressed, the Swede concluded the season in 12th, his second-worst finish in IndyCar. 

But the following season, MSR bounced back, with Rosenqvist sitting fourth in the standings after only three races. He sealed a pivotal fourth-place finish in Indianapolis before grabbing a second-place finish the following month at Road America. While the results were encouraging, he finished sixth in the standings.

Pressure builds

Rosenqvist entered 2026 on his final contracted year with MSR, and with a winless drought of six years, questions began to be asked over the Swede’s future in the sport. The pressure was beginning to build, as younger drivers were making their way into the sport, seats becoming harder to secure, and for Rosenqvist – now considered a veteran – fighting to keep his ride in IndyCar.

It was a rocky start to the season, with Rosenqvist finishing outside the Top 10 in the opening four rounds. He bounced back in Long Beach with a pole position and, even sweeter, a podium. But as the Month of May approached, his high ran out with an unfortunate DNF at the Indianapolis Road Course, casting a dark cloud over the month. 

The cloud began clearing as the ‘Speedy Swede’ approached practice. His No.60 Honda geared up for the elusive event, and Rosenqvist emerged from the garage with immense speed, sealing Fast Friday’s best average speed of 233.372mph. He downplayed the result in the post-session interviews, but remained positive about his car:

“We started pretty slow, to be honest,” Rosenqvist said. “It’s kind of rare you’re able to crawl out of a hole like that. I think our first run was like a 230-something. We just found basically 3 mph. That’s kind of cool. The car felt pretty good.

“Sometimes that happens, like once you find a little speed, it kind of comes. It kind of starts flowing. The balance was really good.”

From write-off to favourite for pole position

His pace continued in qualifying, where he dominated in the first two segments. During round one, his four-lap average was an incredible 232.597mph, a time that was faster than Alex Palou’s pole time in the Fast Six shootout. Rosenqvist controlled the Top 12, dethroning Palou with a 232.065mph.

It was beginning to look like the Swede was on course to seal his maiden Indianapolis 500 pole position, but his pace dropped off in the showdown for pole, with a time only good enough for fourth. 

But, if there’s anything about Indianapolis, the unpredictability means any driver is in contention for victory – no matter where you start.

As the race unfolded, twists and turns of cautions and red flags, Rosenqvist led the pack with eight laps to go. But, teammate Marcus Armstrong took the lead before the race was neutralised once again, as Mick Schumacher made contact with the wall. That meant, when the race restarted, it was a one-lap showdown between Armstrong, David Malukas and Rosenqvist, in third.

After coming so close once before, he wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip from his grasp once again. Malukas took the race lead as Rosenqvist battled Armstrong wheel-to-wheel from the high lane, with the 34-year-old succeeding.

A calcuated risk on the final lap paid off

He set his eyes on Malukas and made an unexpected lunge for the lead. Extra power and strategically snaking behind Malukas gave Rosenqvist a marginal difference in speed, which saw him make an ambitious outside overtake on the Penske driver.

The pair crossed the line just 0.0233 seconds apart, the closest finish in the race’s history and with the chequered flag came a new name on the Borg-Warner: Felix Rosenqvist.

The first thing Rosenqvist said on the radio was wishing his wife and newborn child were there to witness the victory.

The Swede exited his car and was quickly embraced by the MSR team who just achieved their first IndyCar victory since Helio Castroneves won the 500 victory in 2021,

“What a car, what a car,” said Rosenqvist during the post-race interview.

“We had two cars in there for the win, and that’s a very luxurious situation to be in for a team. Thanks Meyer Shank Racing, Honda … I think we were the best car today.

“In all situations, we kind of had it under control,” he reflected.

“That last yellow didn’t help us, but it kind of worked out the right way when I got back to third. Then I just had a flat-out lap on the high line, and it was just the coolest way you can win the Indy 500. 

“I had that momentum going, and I was kind of like, ‘I’m going to go on the high line, and I’m not going to ruin this momentum,” Rosenqvist said. 

“If someone comes in the way, that’s it.’ But no one did, and I was able to stay on the high lane through the whole thing, and I was getting a side draft at the same time from the other guys.”

Learning from a previous mistake paid its devidends

Back in 2022, Rosenqvist came close to victory, but a touch of the brakes on the final lap meant Marcus Ericsson crossed the Brickyard and claimed the glory and dropped the Swede down to fourth.

“That was it (for me), the run is gone,” Rosenqvist reflected on the disappointing result. “You’re never going to recover.“

“So here, I was like, ‘Whatever happens I’ve just got to keep my run, even if it’s on the third lane.’ We just (had) to do it. That’s kind of the only option (I had).“

“You don’t really have an option to go low because there wasn’t any room – it was just stacked down there.”

“I’ve never been flat around the high line for more than one corner (at IMS),”

“To do it a whole lap on the outside, that was pretty cool. It’s kind of unheard of at Indy,” not many drivers attempt the high line at the speedway, due to its reduced downforce and the significantly decreased margin of error, making it considerbly more dangerous.

“That’s just how much you want it — it’s hard to explain that feeling, that you want it so much and you have so much adrenaline that you literally don’t care if you’re going to crash. You’re just going all in. It was cool that that’s what it took to win it, as well.

“To win it like that makes it three times more special. I would have paid a lot of money to watch that race.”

Insta embed of Rosenqvist and his daughter wearing the heath

Rosenqvist’s fantastic Month of May began with his daughter entering his life, and ended as the 77th driver to win the Indianapolis 500, a month which will be hard to ever top.

Featured image credits: Chris Jones