DETROIT — Helio Castroneves joined the exclusive club of four-time Indianapolis 500 winners Sunday, with his latest coming in unexpected style.
Castroneves won his first three Indy 500s with Team Penske, but this one came with a lesser known team in Meyer/Shank Racing which employs Jack Harvey as its full-time driver.
Castroneves won in the No. 06 AutoNation/SiriusXM Honda in a one-race deal, 12 years after winning his third Indy 500 for Team Penske back in 2009.
He felt he had the car to get the job done all month, telling co-owner Mike Shank as much, then showed the 135,000 fans as well on Sunday.
Castroneves ran up front throughout, taking the lead from 24-year-old Spaniard Alex Palou on an outside pass near the start/finish line with two laps remaining, then holding off the Chip Ganassi Racing driver heading into heavy traffic on the final lap to win the fastest Indy 500 — just two cautions — in history.
“It’s a diamond in the rough and they just needed a sculpture, and I guess I was that guy to make that roughness go away,” Castroneves, the 46-year-old Brazilian, said of the Meyer/Shank Racing team. “They gave me an incredible car, incredible pit stops, incredible strategy and I just had to drive the car, so it was a great team effort.”
And, on his final pass?
“My goal was to win at the finish line," he said. "(I) wanted to make sure if I had to pass him in Turn 4 that I had enough gas and speed to pass him there, and I would not to do that because the tires started to go away so I had to make a move like white flag, but as soon as I saw the traffic coming I anticipate my move because that would be a problem, to me if I would be behind and that’s why I made the pass and finally the traffic was able to upset everyone except my car.
“It (celebration) was absolutely incredible. I can’t describe in words, but I can tell you one thing, it was magical.”
Castroneves also became the first four-time champ in 30 years when Rick Mears of Team Penske won his fourth in 1991.
Castroneves got out of his car, climbed up the fence with crewmembers to start the wild celebration, hugged co-owner Mike Shank, then took his helmet off and again climbed the fence and blew kisses to the crowd before running down the track while waving to fans who weren’t allowed to attend the 2020 race — which was delayed a few months to August — due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Castroneves' former Team Penske teammates, Will Power and Simon Pagenaud, went over to congratulate him. Pagenaud, the 2019 Indy 500 winner, finished third and was followed by 22-year-old Patricio O’Ward.
It felt different driving for another team other than Team Penske, but he said that was for multiple reasons.
“The vibe was different," Castroneves said. "I’m still learning some of the guys’ names on the team. This was my first race with them, but when I was in the car there was never a doubt in my mind that we had it since we had a good race car. I told them the car was really strong and we just had to execute, and everyone had the same type of confidence that I had.
“I didn’t feel strange, but certainly it was great to see all the guys from Team Penske congratulate me and give me big props because they know me, and I know them and it’s a big family.”
Castroneves will now try what the other four-time Indy 500 champions — A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Mears — couldn’t, and go for a fifth.
Mears won his fourth in 1991 at age 39 and retired the following year. Unser won his fourth in 1987 at age 48 and ran his last Indy 500 at age 54 in 1993, and Foyt became a four-time champ in 1977 at age 42 and competed in another 15 Indy 500s, running his last at age 57 while finishing ninth.
“The sky’s the limit,” Castroneves said. “I believe in myself even more, to have the strength to go out there and do what I love most. This is a very special place in my heart and when you accomplish something with a young potential team, I just hope we can build something big from here and hopefully we can continue the success that we have.
“The worst thing is to do something part time. I want to race full time with them next year. It would be so much better understanding the car and they with understanding me. It could be flawless.”
Obviously, Castroneves isn’t scheduled to compete in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix doubleheader on Belle Isle June 11-13, but he is still hoping the team can put something together.
“Anything can happen, but I’m not sure they are prepared to do a race right after this one,” Castroneves said. “I got my first win ever there (Belle Isle), won three times there, so I’d love to do it.”
Castroneves won his first IndyCar race on Belle Isle in 2000 for Team Penske, then winning again in 2001 and 2014. He ran full time with Team Penske until 2017.
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