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IndyCar driver Alexander Rossi was having an incredible day at the Indianapolis 500 as he was competing toward the front of the pack, but it all ended in the blink of an eye.
On Lap 73, Rossi’s vehicle began to leak fluid from the back. It was causing problems for Alex Palou, who was immediately behind Rossi’s No. 20. Rossi entered the pits and was told the crew would take a minute to figure out what was going on with his car.
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Alexander Rossi, driver of the #20 ECR Java House Chevrolet, leaves his car as it catches on fire on pit road during the NTT IndyCar Series109th Running Of The Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 25, 2025, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Rossi pulled into his pit box, and his car was covered in flames. He rushed out of his cockpit as officials came over to extinguish the fire. Rossi got out of the car and threw his gloves down to the ground.
Rossi’s fueler Mike Miller needed to be attended to as well, as he still had flames on him in the pits. He appeared to be OK as the issue was being taken care of.
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A fire is put out while Ed Carpenter Racing driver Alexander Rossi (20) is in the pits Sunday, May 25, 2025, during the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Doug McSchooler/for IndyStar / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
“Thankfully Mike’s OK too. It’s always a terrible situation and it’s so disappointing,” Rossi told FOX from his pit box. “That was such a phenomenal racecar, and the team made a great decision to stay out there when that first split happened with the strategy, and everything we were doing on the 20 Java House stand was awesome. That’s what’s so painful about this day is you got to have so many things go right. It’s just disappointing because it’s another opportunity gone.”
Rossi said the gearbox’s temperature started to increase as the race went on, and he believed that was at least one of the reasons why his vehicle went up in flames.
The former winners of the Indianapolis 500, top row, left to right, Alexander Rossi, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, of Brazil, and Marcus Ericsson, of Sweden, bottom row, Will Power, of Australia, Josef Newgarden, Scott Dixon, of New Zealand, and Takuma Sato, of Japan, pose for a photo on the start/finish line before practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
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Rossi won the race in 2016. He finished fourth in 2024 and fifth in 2023 and 2022.
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