Newgarden takes record $3.6 mn top prize for Indy 500 win
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Josef Newgarden took a record top prize of $3.666 million after winning the Indianapolis 500.
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Josef Newgarden took a record top prize of $3.666 million from a record purse of $17,021,500 for winning the Indianapolis 500, IndyCar announced on Monday.
The 32-year-old American captured his first Indy 500 crown on Sunday before more than 330,000 spectators at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Newgarden, the IndyCar season champion in 2017 and 2019, made his breakthrough in his 12th Indy 500 appearance after starting 17th.
This year's average payout for all 33 drivers in the oval classic was $500,600 -- $15,600 more per racer than last year, which boasted the old money marks of $3.1 million for the winner and $14.4 million overall.
Swedish runner-up Marcus Ericsson, last year's Indy 500 champion, took $1.043 million.
Danish driver Benjamin Pedersen was named the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year after finishing 21st. He took home $215,300 plus a $50,000 bonus for being honored as the top newcomer.
