Honda, Ryan Hunter-Reay Win the Indianapolis 500
• Second Honda Indy victory in last three years
• 10th Honda Indy triumph since 2003
• Honda powers four of top-six finishers
Honda-powered Ryan Hunter-Reay won Sunday’s 98th running of the Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, edging Helio Castoneves by six hundredths of a second in the second-closest finish in “500” history.
After running for the first 300 miles at the fastest pace in “500” history, a late-race red flag set up a six-lap shootout to the finish, with Hunter-Reay, Castroneves and the Honda-powered car of Marco Andretti in contention for the victory.
Hunter-Reay and Castroneves traded the lead repeatedly in the final six laps, with Andretti stalking less than a half-second behind. Charging into the first turn at the start of the final lap, Hunter-Reay swept past Castroneves on the outside of Turn One in a thrilling maneuver. The pair ran nose-to-tail throughout the final three corners, but Castroneves was unable to find the speed needed to complete the pass before the checkers.
Hunter-Reay’s victory was the first Indy 500 triumph in his IndyCar career, but the second for Honda in the last three years. Honda’s last win was in 2012 with Dario Franchitti. Honda has now won 10 Indianapolis 500s since 2003 – four (out of a possible six) times with multi-manufacturer competition; and six as sole engine supplier to the series from 2006-2011.
Andretti, Hunter-Reay’s Andretti Autosport teammate, led for 20 laps and finished just 25 hundredths of a second behind the winner. During the closing laps, the third-generation racer twice challenged for second, but fell back after each attack as Castroneves successfully defended.
Carlos Munoz, the rookie star of the 2013 “500”, and NASCAR star Kurt Busch made it four Honda-powered Andretti Autosport machines in the top six at the finish. But front-row starter James Hinchcliffe was eliminated in a multi-car accident on Lap 175. Grand Prix of Indianapolis race winner Simon Pagenaud ran solidly in the lead pack during the first 100 laps, but had his efforts blunted by a cut tire, leading to an unscheduled pit stop.
After starting 14th, Justin Wilson was running seventh on Lap 191 when Townsend Bell crashed exiting Turn 2, which resulted in race officials stopping the race while the track wall was repaired. Debris from Bell’s car damaged Wilson’s Dale Coyne Racing Honda, taking him out of contention.
The race ran at a record-breaking pace of more than 212 mph for the first 425 miles, and also seta new mark for completingthe first 150 laps without a caution flag. Although there were a total of five caution flags in the final 50 laps – and a red flag on Lap 192 to set up the final dash to the checkers – the 21 laps run under caution tied a record for fewest yellow-flag laps, set in 1976. Even with the late-race cautions and 10-minute red flag period, Hunter-Reay’s winning average speed of 186.563 mph is the second-fastest in Indianapolis 500 history, bested only by Tony Kanaan’s winning average of 187.433 set in last year’s race.