Motorsport is a cruel beast, and the NTT IndyCar SERIES handed out plenty of agony to match its thrills across 2026. While the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge always leaves a trail of what-ifs—with five drivers finishing within a second of that iconic Borg-Warner Trophy this year—the rest of the calendar brought its own unique brand of heartbreak.
Christian Rasmussen learned that lesson the hard way at Phoenix Raceway during the Good Ranchers 250. The Ed Carpenter Racing driver put on a thrilling drive after starting 18th, leading a career-high 69 laps. But his day effectively ended on Lap 207 when he tried to pass race leader Will Power of Andretti Global on the outside in Turn 2. Their cars touched wheels, puncturing Power's right rear tire and sending Rasmussen bouncing hard off the outside wall. Although Rasmussen soldiered on with a compromised machine to lead the next 34 laps, he was eventually swallowed up by Andretti Global's Kyle Kirkwood and Team Penske's Josef Newgarden on Lap 242. Newgarden went on to win, while Rasmussen faded to 14th. Power conceded he should have given more room, leaving a furious Rasmussen to lament a win that slipped away.
I came out of Turn 6, and the engine just started sputtering like it was out of fuel. But clearly it wasn't, and then it completely died,
At the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500, Marcus Armstrong found himself standing at the edge of glory before it all dissolved. Coming to the white flag for a one-lap shootout, Team Penske's David Malukas passed him on the outside, and Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb Agajanian teammate Felix Rosenqvist pulled alongside in a fierce duel for second. Armstrong kept Rosenqvist on his outside until he was forced to lift in Turn 4 to avoid a collision with his teammate. He had a front-row seat to Rosenqvist's stunning dart to Malukas' outside in the closest finish in Indy history—a razor-thin separation of .0233 of a second. Worse still, Armstrong lost a three-way battle for third to Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin and Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward, capping off a fifth-place finish that stung despite helping secure his contract extension six weeks later.
David Malukas experienced his own historic brand of Indy heartbreak. The first-year Team Penske driver was ridiculously close to winning the sport's biggest prize, running in front of Rosenqvist past the entrance to pit road for the final time. But the front straightaway at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a long road, and Malukas learned it the hard way as he crossed the finish line side by side with Rosenqvist, trailing by about half of a car length. "I just don't know what else we could have done," he said. It marked the third consecutive runner-up finish at IMS for Malukas, following his 2025 defeat to Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou and this year's Sonsio Grand Prix loss to Arrow McLaren's Christian Lundgaard. It was one of four second-place finishes for Malukas on the year, pushing his career total to six as he remains winless.
Armstrong's misery struck again later in the season at the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America. Cruising with a commanding four-second lead with just laps remaining, smoke suddenly billowed from the back of his car four laps from the finish. "You've got to be kidding me," FOX broadcaster James Hinchcliffe cried out. "I came out of Turn 6, and the engine just started sputtering like it was out of fuel. But clearly it wasn't, and then it completely died," a deflated Armstrong explained after Christian Lundgaard swept past to take the win in his fourth winless season.
Finally, Romain Grosjean suffered a stunning blow at the inaugural Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham. The French-Swiss driver took the lead with 21 laps remaining when Andretti Global's Marcus Ericsson pitted for the final time, dropping to sixth. Grosjean drove masterfully to lead 28 laps, appearing poised to give Dale Coyne Racing its first victory since Sebastien Bourdais won his second consecutive race in St. Petersburg back in 2018. But Ericsson reeled him in, passing him on Lap 86 of 90 to leave Grosjean finishing second by 7.5305 seconds. "I cried a little -- I'm not going to lie," Grosjean admitted after securing the sixth runner-up finish of his career.
