INDIANAPOLIS — Rinus VeeKay continued IndyCar’s youth motion Saturday by scoring his first profession victory with a win on the highway course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The Dutchman turned the third first-time winner by 5 races this season — essentially the most at this level within the season since 2013.

The 20-year-old is the fourth winner 24 or youthful to achieve victory lane this season, becoming a member of Alex Palou, Colton Herta and Pato O’Ward in what’s shortly turning into a altering of the guard in IndyCar.

Solely six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon has been to victory lane to this point this yr for the veterans because the sequence heads subsequent week into preparations for the Indianapolis 500.

VeeKay sliced by the middle of Palou and Jimmie Johnson on a gutsy three-wide cross to indicate early how aggressive he was at Indy then chased down pole-sitter Romain Grosjean to take his first lead of the race on Lap 45.

Grosjean reclaimed the lead when VeeKay pitted, organising a possible second showdown. However VeeKay was simply previous Grosjean earlier than he bought again onto observe off pit highway.

VeeKay beat Grosjean to the end line by practically 5 seconds.

“I knew we had the automobile; we had been so quick,” VeeKay stated after main 33 laps.

VeeKay gained for Ed Carpenter Racing, the primary victory for the crew since Josef Newgarden in 2016. Newgarden has since moved to Crew Penske and gained two IndyCar championships.

Grosjean led a race-high 44 laps and completed second for his first podium end since 2015 in Components One. The Frenchman survived a fiery crash in Bahrain in November that left him with extreme scarring on his arms and marked the top of his F1 profession.

He gained the pole for the race in simply his third IndyCar begin — his first pole in 10 years — and the group at Indy cheered on the fence for him after his end.

“Bahrain was horriblek however for my life it has been a fantastic expertise and individuals are actually behind me and I can really feel it,” Grosjean stated. “The assist I’m having is unbelievable. You have solely seen me smiling right here within the U.S., and we’re blissful to be racing right here.”

Palou was third, adopted by Newgarden, Graham Rahal, Simon Pagenaud, Alexander Rossi, Scott McLaughlin, Dixon and Marcus Ericsson. Jimmie Johnson completed twenty fourth.