A spectacular pole position followed by a classy victory: The only thing about Scott McLaughlin’s start to the IndyCar season which wasn’t perfect was his celebration.
Having emulated last year’s champion Alex Palou by starting his second season with a win, McLaughlin leapt from his car in celebration – and tumbled head-over-heels onto the ground.
But that only made the 28-year-old’s first win in the series an even more memorable triumph. It was an immediate breakthrough for a driver who had been anxious to take a step forward during his second full season.
True, McLaughlin claimed Rookie of the Year honours against two big names from the worlds of F1 and NASCAR last year. But as he was the only first-year driver to run every race last season, that was not unexpected. Even so, he nearly gave the award away to Romain Grosjean, who had missed three of the season’s 16 races – all of which were ovals.
At the Indianapolis 500, McLaughlin was also voted the race’s rookie of…