Felix Rosenqvist feeling mixed emotions after Long Beach win slips away

Meyer Shank driver loses lead to Alex Palou in final pit stop after controlling race from pole

Felix Rosenqvist executed a nearly flawless race, but he was still left standing on the second-highest step on the podium in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

After starting on pole in the #60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda, Rosenqvist was stellar in controlling the race and keeping four-time and defending IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou safely behind.

However, on lap 57, debris in Turn 3 brought out a caution (the first since 2024), that negated the Rosenqvist’s 3s advantage and set up the last round of pit stops. And it was there that, despite a smooth stop and accelerating off pit road, he was left looking at the rear wing of Palou’s #10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank w/ Curb-Agajanian

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

Though Rosenqvist tried to make the most of the restart with 29 laps to go, he was unable to mount a charge and finished a defeated 3.9663s to the Spaniard.

"I'm just happy it [the pit stop] didn't screw up our race," said Rosenqvist, 34. "Things like that can happen. You just end up ruining your whole day. Effectively we were in the same spot.

But the annoying thing for me was I had a bit of a cushion, I had like 2.3 seconds or something. I felt like even with a bad stop, we'll probably stay ahead. We also did well on fuel stints. These things happen. I kind of knew it was going to be yellow at some point. There it came, so... Yeah, a little bit frustrating. End of the day Alex and his crew did a better job in that moment of pressure there. It's just something to learn from."

Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank w/ Curb-Agajanian

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

Rosenqvist led a race-high 51 of the 90 laps, which also stands as the most he’s led in a single race in his IndyCar career.

Having come in with zero top 10s in the opening four races to start the season, finishing 12th (twice - St. Petersburg, Phoenix) over that span, Rosenqvist was eager to deliver a strong result. And although he did that, being so close to his second career win in North America’s premier open-wheel championship is bittersweet.