Marcus Ericsson among the ‘heartbroken’ after Indy 500: ‘More than just a race’

Bruce Martin
Special to FOXSports.com

INDIANAPOLIS — Finishing second in the biggest race in the world would seem like a reason to celebrate.

But finishing second in the Indianapolis 500 usually makes a race driver cry.

That’s what Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global did when he pulled into pit lane and climbed out of his No. 28 Andretti Global Honda on Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Ericsson won the Indianapolis 500 in 2022. He finished second in 2023 but was more upset with the way INDYCAR Race Control handled a late Red Flag in order to have a one-lap restart in that race, as Josef Newgarden captured the first of his two Indianapolis 500 wins.

In Sunday’s 109th Indianapolis 500, Ericsson was battling with his former Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Alex Palou.

You may know him as the driver that always wins in INDYCAR. And on Sunday, he won the Indianapolis 500 for the first time in his career.

Ericsson was in the lead from Lap 170 to Lap 186 before Palou passed him on Lap 187. From that point until the yellow and checkered flags waved after 200 laps, Palou used all the skill, savvy and experience to drive to victory and deny Ericsson the second Indy 500 win of his career.

Ericsson finished 0.6822 of a second behind Palou’s No. 10 DHL Honda.

For Palou, it was joyous.

For Ericsson, it was heartbreaking.

Ericsson sat on pit wall and hung his head with the helmet still on. That’s because tears were flowing down his face.

When he took off the helmet, his eyes were filled with tears.

It’s proof that losing hurts worse than winning feels good.

"This race is more than just a race. It means everything to me," Ericsson told me. "To be that close to winning again. It’s the second time I finished second here. 

"It’s