No. 4 crew chief Rodney Childers fined $10,000

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team of Kevin Harvick was assessed a Safety penalty on Wednesday for violating Sections 10.9.10.4 (Tires and Wheels) of the NASCAR Rule Book. Lug nut(s) were not properly installed on the car after Sunday's Coca Cola 600.

Crew chief Rodney Childers has been fined $10,000.

Austin Dillon puts the No. 3 Chevrolet back in Victory Lane on fuel-mileage gamble

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

CONCORD, N.C. – Armed with a new crew chief and a gas tank that held just enough fuel to get him to the end of 600 miles with less than a second to spare, Austin Dillon won the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series of his career and put the vaunted No. 3 Chevrolet back in Victory Lane for the first time since 2000.

Working for the first time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with crew chief Justin Alexander, Dillon was one of eight drivers who stayed on the track when the strongest cars in the Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway—the Toyotas of eventual runner-up Kyle Busch and third-place Martin Truex Jr.—came to pit road on Lap 368 of 400.

Saving fuel for the entire run, Dillon trailed Jimmie Johnson, who also stayed out, until the seven-time champion ran out of gas with less than three laps left. With Busch and Truex in hot pursuit, Dillon had just enough fuel to get to the finish line.

The No. 3 Chevrolet owned by Dillon’s grandfather, Richard Childress, returned to the winner’s circle for the first time since the late Dale Earnhardt won his last race on Oct. 15, 2000 at Talladega. After Earnhardt’s death in the 2001 Daytona 500, Childress retired the number in NASCAR’s premier series until Dillon ran his first full season of Cup racing in 2014.  

"It hasn’t sunk in yet," Dillon said in Victory Lane. "I can’t believe it. I was just really focused on those last laps. My fiancé wrote in the car, ‘When you keep God in first-place, he will take you places you never imagined.’

"And, I never imagined I be here at the 600 Victory Lane. Praise the Lord and all these guys who work so hard; and my pit crew is the best on pit road. I love it for them. We’re in the playoffs. It’s awesome."

Dillon, who led only the final two laps, had to restrain himself from using too much fuel in pursuit of Johnson.

"I was just trying to be patient with the No. 48," Dillon said. "I could see him saving. I thought I’d saved enough early, where I could attack at the end, but I tried to wait as long as possible. And when he ran out, I figured I’d go back in and save where I was lifting, and it worked out.

"I ran out at the line, and it gurgled all around just to do one little spin and push it back to Victory Lane."

Matt Kenseth ran fourth, followed by Joe Gibbs racing teammate Denny Hamlin, as Toyotas claimed positions two through five.

The fireworks started early at the 1.5-mile track, more than six hours before the race ended. On Lap 20, five laps before a scheduled competition caution, a large piece of debris shot from the back of Jeffrey Earnhardt’s smoking No. 33 car into the path of Chase Elliott’s No. 24 Chevrolet.

The debris knocked a hole in the nose of Elliott’s car, and flames erupted beneath the engine compartment as fluid spilled from the Chevy. Brad Keselowski skidded through the oil, as if his No. 2 Ford had hit a patch of ice, and piled into the back of Elliott’s car, destroying both machines.

"Somebody broke, and there was just oil everywhere, and I couldn’t turn," Keselowski said. "I ran into the back of Chase. Somebody broke in front of him, and then he ran over what they broke and then he broke, so there were two cars broke in front of me and just oil everywhere. 

"You couldn’t stop and turn. You couldn’t do anything. It’s a real bummer for our team. We had a really fast Miller Lite Ford, and I think we had a shot at winning tonight, but that’s how it goes."

Elliott was equally disappointed that his car was on a wrecker in the garage.

"The No. 33 broke something ahead of me and I ended up hitting it," Elliott said. "I hit it pretty hard. I knew it had hurt our nose at least, then I saw some flames and figured we were laying down oil too, I guess.

"Brad couldn’t get stopped and ended up kind of finishing us off, but it was a bummer. I hate it. I don’t really know what you do about stuff like that. Just move on."

After the subsequent restart on Lap 28, the rest of the first 100-lap stage ran caution-free, with Kyle Busch passing Truex on Lap 90 and pulling away to secure the playoff point accorded the stage winner.

Truex was leading when the caution flag flew for the third time on Lap 142 after Matt DiBenedetto’s No. 32 Ford slammed into the outside wall. Moments later, NASCAR red-flagged the race because of the threat of heavy rain and lightning in the area.

The rain arrived and drenched the track, forcing a delay of 1 hour, 39 minutes, 56 seconds before the cars started rolling again.

Truex dominated after a restart on Lap 176 and won the second stage going away. The driver of the No. 78 Toyota appeared headed for another victory in Stage 3 until series leader Kyle Larson blew a tire and pounded the wall on Lap 292.

"I got really loose into (Turn) 3 and hit the wall and got a lot of damage, and the tire started to go down and then exploded in (Turn) 1," Larson said. "I just hate it that I made a mistake there in Turn 3 and got in the wall.

"I wasn’t even running hard up there. I just got loose and then I hit it and it ruined our day. I’m hoping to hold onto the point lead and then go to Dover next week and try to do better."

(As it turned out, Truex took over the series lead by five points over Larson, with Keselowski 82 points back in third-place.)

After Larson’s accident, Truex lost three spots on pit road on Lap 294, ceding the stage win to Denny Hamlin.

But Truex, who led a race-high 233 laps—and led the most laps in the Coca-Cola 600 for the third straight year with only last year’s win to show for it—regained the top spot after a restart on lap 334, clearing Kyle Busch through the first two corners, and soon pulled away to a two-second lead.

Then Dillon’s fuel-mileage play changed everything.


Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race - Coca-Cola 600

Charlotte Motor Speedway

Concord, North Carolina

Sunday, May 28, 2017

               1. (22) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 400.
               2. (2) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 400.
               3. (8) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 400.
               4. (4) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 400.
               5. (6) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 400.
               6. (12) Kurt Busch, Ford, 400.
               7. (5) Erik Jones #, Toyota, 400.
               8. (1) Kevin Harvick, Ford, 400.
               9. (17) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 400.
               10. (19) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 400.
               11. (20) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 400.
               12. (11) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 400.
               13. (16) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 400.
               14. (9) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 400.
               15. (13) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 400.
               16. (18) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 400.
               17. (14) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 400.
               18. (26) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 399.
               19. (21) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 399.
               20. (29) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 399.
               21. (23) Joey Logano, Ford, 399.
               22. (25) Regan Smith(i), Ford, 399.
               23. (28) David Ragan, Ford, 397.
               24. (7) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 396.
               25. (15) Danica Patrick, Ford, 396.
               26. (33) * JJ Yeley(i), Chevrolet, 395.
               27. (32) Gray Gaulding #, Toyota, 393.
               28. (31) Landon Cassill, Ford, 393.
               29. (36) * Timmy Hill(i), Chevrolet, 384.
               30. (35) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 375.
               31. (37) * Derrike Cope, Toyota, 327.
               32. (40) * Corey LaJoie #, Toyota, Engine, 315.
               33. (39) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, Accident, 292.
               34. (34) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, Engine, 290.
               35. (24) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, Accident, 244.
               36. (27) Ty Dillon #, Chevrolet, Rear End, 242.
               37. (30) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, Accident, 139.
               38. (3) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, Accident, 19.
               39. (10) Brad Keselowski, Ford, Accident, 19.
               40. (38) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, Rear End, 18.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  138.8 mph.
Time of Race:  04 Hrs, 19 Mins, 22 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.835 Seconds.
Caution Flags:  9 for 53 laps.
Lead Changes:  23 among 10 drivers.
Lap Leaders:   K. Harvick 1; Kyle Busch 2-23; K. Harvick 24-64; Kyle Busch 65-66; J. Johnson 67; D. Patrick 68-74; M. Truex Jr. 75-89; Kyle Busch 90-102; M. Truex Jr. 103; K. Harvick 104-106; M. Truex Jr. 107-176; P. Menard 177-178; M. Truex Jr. 179-248; J. Johnson 249-252; M. Truex Jr. 253-294; R. Stenhouse Jr. 295-296; D. Hamlin 297-306; Kyle Busch 307-329; M. Truex Jr. 330; Kyle Busch 331-333; M. Truex Jr. 334-367; Kurt Busch 368; J. Johnson 369-398; A. Dillon 399-400.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  M. Truex Jr. 7 times for 233 laps; Kyle Busch 5 times for 63 laps; K. Harvick 3 times for 45 laps; J. Johnson 3 times for 35 laps; D. Hamlin 1 time for 10 laps; D. Patrick 1 time for 7 laps; R. Stenhouse Jr. 1 time for 2 laps; P. Menard 1 time for 2 laps; A. Dillon 1 time for 2 laps; Kurt Busch 1 time for 1 lap.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 18,78,4,48,20,42,21,14,41,1
Stage #2 Top Ten: 78,48,20,18,41,1,3,77,42,11
Stage #3 Top Ten: 11,18,20,78,77,41,4,19,88,3

Honda validates engine trouble by winning Indianapolis 500

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – All the negative publicity Honda received in the lead-up to the Indianapolis 500 washed away when Takuma Sato dumped a bottle of 2 percent milk over his head in victory lane.

So what if three Honda engines blew up Sunday while they were running with the leaders?

It only took one to win "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."

"We sort of knew you're going with the odds when you have six cars," said Sato team owner Michael Andretti, whose cars had two of the failed engines. "We only needed one to come through."

In truth, the blown engines of Ryan Hunter-Reay, Charlie Kimball and Fernando Alonso merely put a hazy cloud far in the background of a banner day for Honda. The company whose power surpassed that of rival Chevrolet throughout May not only ushered Sato past Helio Castroneves and across the finish line, but counted four of the top five finishers and six of the top eight.

Ed Jones finished third, Max Chilton was fourth and Tony Kanaan was fifth, while Sato's teammates on Andretti Autosport, Alexander Rossi and Marco Andretti, also finished in the top eight.

It was the third time in four years that Honda had reached victory lane.

"When I was seeing each Honda going away I'm like, `Here we go.' That's what I said," said Castroneves, whose Team Penske teammates hoped the reliability of their Chevrolet engines would win the day. "They gave the good engine to Alonso but they gave the meaning engine to Takuma Sato."

Honda has had engine trouble all season, losing five at Long Beach, eight more at Phoenix and two during the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. But the focus became more intense in the lead-up to the biggest race of the season. A handful of engines went down during practice and qualifying, and James Hinchcliffe lost his engine with only minutes left in the final practice on Carb Day.

Honda engineers found some commonalities in the engine failures, but they were never able to fully diagnose what was causing the problem. And that left teams a bit nervous on Sunday.

For a while, it looked as if everything would be OK.

The Honda-powered cars went straight to the front, dominating the early laps. But then the first groan echoed across the speedway went Hunter-Reay's car came to a halt 64 laps from the end, and Kimball's car experienced the same fate 21 laps later.

Alonso was still running in the top 10 when his engine let go on the front straightaway with 20 laps to go, just as the two-time Formula One champ was working his way back to the front.

All of them had led laps - Hunter-Reay for 28, Alonso for 27 and Kimball for five. And the fact that Hunter-Reay and Alonso were part of the six-team Andretti Autosport effort, it was little surprise that their troubles gave Andretti some serious concern in the closing laps of the race.

"I don't blame Honda at all," he said. "If anything, I blame all of us, pushing Honda so hard. They had come to us and said, `We can give you a little less reliable engine and it would have more power,' so of course we said, `Let's go for the power.' And when we did that, obviously, we knew there was going to be some sad faces."

There was at least one very happy face in victory lane, though.

Sato went through all the usual post-race traditions, drinking the milk and kissing the bricks and snapping pictures in his car. At one point, he pulled on a Honda hat and flashed a big smile.

For the engine manufacturer, that made up for all the other trouble.

"Oh, absolutely," Honda motorsports executive T.E. McHale said. "To win this race you've got to push the envelope. In past years, kind of dating to the era of single supply, we had to build engines more for reliability than for performance, because we knew we were going to win the race no matter what.

"But we're in a new era now," he said, "and Chevrolet's bringing everything they've got and we have to kind of walk that fine line. I feel gutted for Fernando and Ryan, who were front-runners today and could have easily won the race. But we made the decision earlier in the week to run for speed and performance rather than for durability and distance."

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More AP auto racing: http://racing.ap.org

Castroneves runs near-perfect race, ends 2nd again at Indy

By MICHAEL MAROT
AP Sports Writer

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Helio Castroneves insisted all week he had a car that could win the Indianapolis 500.

He almost got it right.

The three-time race winner charged through the pack from the No. 19 starting spot Sunday, barely avoided two crashes, overcame a broken winglet and a drive-thru penalty, only to back off one last pass because of worn tires with two laps to go. He never got another chance to slingshot his way past Japan's Takuma Sato and wound up settling for a record-tying runner-up finish rather than celebrating a record-tying victory.

"Yes, it's tough to accept after so many things happened," said Castroneves, who became the seventh driver to finish second three times at the 2.5-mile oval. "Finishing second again sucks. So close to get the fourth (win), but I'm really trying, I will not give up this dream. I know it's going to happen."

He's now 0 for 8 in his attempt to join A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears as the only four-time Indy 500 winners.

The Brazilian did everything in his power to end the streak Sunday, he just didn't quite have the wheels to do it.

Racing down the front straightaway side-by-side with Sato as Lap 198 ended and Lap 199 began, Castroneves momentarily pulled ahead of Sato - bringing a roar from the crowd. But fearing he would wind up in the wall, Castroneves lifted as Sato sped past and waited for a second chance that never materialized.

Castroneves finished 0.2011 seconds behind Sato, leaving him exactly 0.5601 seconds short of three more Indy wins.

"When I was seeing each Honda going away, I'm like, `Here we go.' That's what I said," Castroneves said, referring to the stronger engines that proved less durable all month. "They gave the good engine to Alonso, but they gave the meaning engine to Takuma Sato."

It wasn't a complete loss for Team Penske or Castroneves, whose had the best showing from the five-car team over the last two weeks.

Only one of the team's five drivers, Will Power, qualified in the top half of the 33-car field. The Australian was knocked out after getting collected in a four-car crash on Lap 184. American Josef Newgarden dropped out of contention when his car stalled as he tried to avoid the same crash.

France's Simon Pagenaud was never a contender Sunday, and two-time 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya, of Colombia, led only two laps and finished sixth.

"We had our cars in the top 10 up and until the accident, we were in good shape," Roger Penske said. "But then again we just didn't have the outright speed we needed. The Hondas had a little bit more."

Castroneves, meanwhile, overcame an adventurous race in which he somehow escaped a rebound collision with Jay Howard on Lap 53 and then watched Scott Dixon fly into the air after he couldn't avoid Howard's sliding car.

On Lap 75, he was penalized for jumping a restart, a call Castroneves contended might have been wrong.

Had he avoided the damage after Howard's car tapped his or the penalty, Castroneves might have made his way back to victory lane.

He almost did anyway. With six laps to go, Castroneves made an incredibly risky outside pass of race leader Max Chilton only to watch Sato retake the lead with five laps to go.

Castroneves spent the rest of the race playing cat-and-mouse with Sato and nearly had him just as the second-to-last lap began.

"Actually when I went past, I think with three laps to go, on the outside, I knew I would make it," Castroneves said. "As soon as I started turning, the car started pushing. I'm like, `Oh, this is going to be a problem.' Then I thought it would create momentum for us, but unfortunately not even that. I wasn't even able to get that. So really a shame."

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More AP auto racing: http://racing.ap.org

The Latest: Crash at NASCAR collects Elliott, Keselowski

By The Associated Press

(AP) -- The Latest on motorsport's busiest day (all times local):

6:40 p.m. EST

A crash 20 laps into the 400-lap Coca-Cola 600 has claimed the cars of Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski.

Something flew out from underneath Jeffrey Earnhardt and hit the front of Elliott's car, which quickly caught fire just as NASCAR was preparing going to a competition caution. Keselowski, who was racing behind Elliott, slammed into the back of Elliott's car.

Both cars have been taken behind the wall.

Keselowski was considered one of the favorites to win the race. He has already won twice on the Cup Series circuit this year.

"There was just oil everywhere," Keselowski said. "You just couldn't stop or turn or anything."

- Steve Reed reporting from Concord, North Carolina

---

6:25 p.m.

The nightcap for racing's biggest day is underway.

Drivers got off cleanly at the start of the NASCAR's longest race, the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina.

Pole sitter Kevin Harvick led the way with All-Star race winner Kyle Busch right behind. Four hundred laps from now we'll know who'll join Monaco Grand Prix winner Sebastian Vettel and Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato in the winner's circle.

Martin Truex Jr. is the defending champion at the 600, leading last year's race for a record 392 out of 400 laps.

- Pete Iacobelli reporting from Concord, North Carolina

---

4:30 p.m.

Fernando Alonso and McLaren might not be done with the Indy 500 just yet.

The two-time Formula One champion's opportunity to win the race expired with his engine with 20 laps remaining. Alonso was hoping to add the second jewel to the Triple Crown, joining his victory at the Grand Prix of Monaco, and leave only the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

McLaren boss Zak Brown told The Associated Press that the Indy 500 "is something I'd like to see us do on a more regular basis." The manufacturer returned to Indy this year after a long absence.

Would Alonso be behind the wheel? '"'We have to get through tonight," Brown said, "but yeah, I'd like to see him back. ... But our goal is to win Monaco next year with Fernando in the car."

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

4 p.m.

Takuma Sato has won the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500.

The Japanese driver who wrecked on the final lap while dueling Dario Franchitti for the lead in 2012 held off Helio Castroneves over the final laps. He gave Andretti Autosport its second consecutive victory and third in the last four years.

Sato screamed into his radio as he slowed down the front stretch, his Honda engine still under power after three others let go while their drivers were near the front of the race.

Castroneves finished second, followed by Ed Jones, Max Chilton and Tony Kanaan.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

3:30 p.m.

Two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso has blown his engine with 20 laps remaining in the Indianapolis 500, the third Honda to explode in the closing laps of the race.

The crowd went crazy for Alonso as he climbed out of his car.

Alonso, skipping the Monaco Grand Prix to run the race, had been fast all month and was near the front all afternoon. But as he tried to work toward the front late in the race, the Honda power that had been pushing for the lead finally let go.

Ryan Hunter-Reay and Charlie Kimball also had Honda engines expire, making nine of them during practice, qualifying and the race on Sunday.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

2:55 p.m.

The trouble Honda has been experiencing all month has bitten Ryan Hunter-Reay.

Honda has been plagued by blown engines ever since teams switched from the road setups for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis to testing on the big oval. James Hinchcliffe's engine blew on Carb Day and now Hunter-Reay's engine has let go with 64 laps remaining.

Honda engines have had far more power than Chevrolet this month, but reliability has been a major problem. Hunter-Reay's was the eighth Honda engine to blow in practice, qualifying and the race.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

2:15 p.m.

Helio Castroneves was the leader at the midway point of the Indianapolis 500, using an alternate pit strategy along with the rest of his Chevy-powered Team Penske teammates.

He later led his 5,700th lap, moving him into fifth on IndyCar's career list.

Castroneves pitted from the lead a few minutes later, sending Alexander Rossi back to the front. He was passed by Ryan Hunter-Reay, and when the former winner went into the pits, Graham Rahal moved into the lead. It was the 13th lead change, one off the Indy 500 record.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

2 p.m.

It's been a parade for Andretti Autosport at the Indy 500.

Ryan Hunter-Reay was leading when a caution came out for debris with 119 laps to go. He was followed by teammates Alexander Rossi and Fernando Alonso with fellow teammate Takuma Sato in fifth.

The debris appeared to come off another teammate, Marco Andretti, who was running 10th.

Andretti Autosport has won two of the last three races with Hunter-Reay taking the 2014 edition and Rossi winning it as a rookie last season.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

1:10 p.m.

Pole sitter Scott Dixon has been involved in a terrifying wreck and is out of the Indianapolis 500.

Dixon's car struck the car of Jay Howard, who had slid into the outside wall and then careered back across the track.

Dixon's car then catapulted toward the inside barrier, where it landed and split in half. Pieces of his car were left strewn across the track in Turn 2 as his car slid to a halt.

Dixon was already moving before his wreck car came to a stop. He got out of the car on his own power to a roar from the crowd and stepped into a waiting ambulance for a trip to the infield care center.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

1:05 p.m.

The first 100 miles of the Indianapolis 500 have been dominated by Andretti Autosport.

Defending race winner Alexander Rossi, Formula One star Fernando Alonso and team newcomer Takuma Sato are running away from the field through the first 40 laps. They have already started to pick away lapped traffic as they turn laps of 220 mph.

All three cars are powered by Honda, which has had more power than Chevrolet all month.

The three teammates have begun to jockey for the lead, not racing each other so much as sharing the time at the front. That's allowing them all to extend their fuel economy.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

1 p.m.

The first round of pit stops at the Indy 500 left Indianapolis native Ed Carpenter in the front, followed by defending race winner Alexander Rossi and Formula One star Fernando Alonso.

Alonso took his first race lead moments later on Lap 37.

Two-time race winner Juan Pablo Montoya stalled his car when he reached pit road, costing him some valuable time. Jay Howard ran out of gas and had to nurse his car to the pits.

Zach Veach missed his pit box and was assessed a drive-thru penalty.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

12:40 p.m.

Tony Kanaan just surpassed the 4,000-lap led mark for his IndyCar career.

In his 20th season, the 2013 Indy 500 champion has roared to the front under cloudy skies and with a stiff breeze blowing off Turn 2. It's the 13th time in 16 starts at Indianapolis that the Brazilian has led the race, tying four-time winner A.J. Foyt for the race record.

Now, the question is whether Kanaan's engine can keep him there.

Kanaan is powered by a Honda engine for Chip Ganassi Racing, and there's been a string of failures for the manufacturer the past few weeks. James Hinchcliffe's engine was the latest to let go on Carb Day.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

12:30 p.m.

Fernando Alonso had no problems with a rolling start at the Indy 500.

The two-time Formula One champion said this week that he hadn't made a rolling start in a race in 20 years, back when he was driving karts. But starting in the middle of the second row, Alonso took it easy on the traditional three-wide start under the famed Indianapolis pagoda.

He quickly dropped a few spots as the field got to speed, while Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi began jockeying for the lead ahead of him.

Kanaan was leading Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon after 10 laps.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

12:05 p.m.

Angela Brown gave a stirring rendition of "God Bless America" at the first Indy 500 since Florence Henderson died.

Henderson sang the song virtually every year for decades.

As a tribute to Henderson, she was recognized Saturday at the driver's meeting and a brick with her name on it was placed inside speedway's museum.

- Michael Marot reporting from Indianapolis

---

11:15 a.m.

Vice President Mike Pence and wife Karen returned to the speedway for another Indy 500, a longtime family tradition.

"It is a global event," Pence told ABC. "To be able to be here ... is a real joy for us."

The former Indiana governor left the race prediction to Karen, however, and she went with veteran Ed Carpenter.

"He's a friend, a hometown boy - and he's in the front row this year," she said.

---

10:15 a.m.

Sebastian Bourdais is at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and, as promised, he's using crutches.

The Frenchman was involved in a terrifying wreck on qualifying weekend that left him with a fractured pelvis, hip and ribs. He had surgery hours after the accident, was released from Methodist Hospital on Wednesday and is already going through hours of daily rehabilitation .

"I'm feeling great to be here and out of the hospital atmosphere," said Bourdais, who told The Associated Press on Saturday that he refused to show up in a wheel chair.

Bourdais still can't put any weight on his right leg for five weeks, but he is targeting he season-ending race at Sonoma to get back in his car. James Davison will start in his place for Dale Coyne Racing on Sunday.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

10 a.m.

The red carpet is in full swing beneath the famed Pagoda at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and as usual, it's an eclectic bunch from the worlds of sports and entertainment.

Professional wrestler Ric Flair dutifully went "Wooooo!" for the crowd. Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith stopped by to chat. "The Walking Dead" actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who will drive the pace car for the Indy 500, was a popular selfie choice along with his wife, "One Tree Hill" star Hilarie Burton.

Singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha signed autographs a few hours before she was due to sing the national anthem. Jake Gyllenhall was also hanging around to promote his upcoming movie about the Boston Marathon bombing, accompanied by Jeff Bauman, who authored the best-selling book that inspired the film.

Gyllenhall and Bauman were sharing honorary starter duties.

- Dave Skretta reporting from Indianapolis

---

3:47 p.m.

Sebastian Vettel beat his Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen to win the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday and comfortably extend his lead at the top of the standings.

It was the four-time F1 champion's third win of the season and 45th of his career, as well as Ferrari's first at Monaco since Michael Schumacher in 2001. Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo finished third ahead of Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas.

Title rival Lewis Hamilton clawed his Mercedes through the field to finish a commendable seventh from 13th on the grid.

Raikkonen started from pole position for the first time in nine years, with Vettel joining him on the front row. Both made a clean start, with Vettel holding off Bottas heading into the first corner.

After Raikkonen and Bottas had both come in for a tire change a few laps earlier, Vettel timed his change to perfection 39 laps into the 78-lap race. When he came back out, he was in front of Raikkonen.

- Jerome Pugmire in Monaco

---

2:40 p.m.

Lewis Hamilton is making his way through the field and into the points at the Monaco Grand Prix.

The three-time F1 champion started back from 13th place on the grid after a surprisingly bad performance from his Mercedes in Saturday's qualifying.

But the British driver has picked up three places and is up to 10th place after 30 laps of the 78-lap race.

Up ahead, Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas was closing in on second-placed Sebastian Vettel's Ferrari. Kimi Raikkonen still leads as he chases his first win since the season-opening Australian GP in 2013.

- Jerome Pugmire in Monaco

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2:05 p.m.

British driver Jenson Button got a surprise message on the radio just as he was preparing to start the Monaco Grand Prix.

It was from Fernando Alonso, who skipped this year's Formula One race to run in the Indianapolis 500.

Button came out of retirement for this race to fill in for Alonso. The exchange went like this.

Alonso: "I am sure you don't want to hear my voice before you start but I just want to say good luck and I will be watching you here."

"Thanks mate!" Button replied. "I am going to pee in your seat!"

Said Alonso: "Please don't do that!"

Monaco's tight 3.4-kilometer (2.1-mile) course is the hardest in F1 to pass competitors.

- Jerome Pugmire in Monaco

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Noon

One of the busiest days in motorsports has arrived.

The Formula One series kicks things off with the Monaco Grand Prix. Four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel holds a slender six-point lead on three-time champion Lewis Hamilton. They have two wins each, but Vettel's Ferrari looks much quicker than it did last year while Hamilton's Mercedes is not as dominant. Vettel starts the race on the front row alongside teammate Kimi Raikkonen.

The Indianapolis 500 is next, with a special guest this year. All eyes will be on two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso as the Spaniard makes a one-off debut. He qualified in fifth place for the biggest race on the IndyCar calendar. Scott Dixon is on the pole for the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing."

NASCAR wraps things up Sunday night with one of its biggest races of the year, the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Kevin Harvick is on the pole.

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More AP auto racing: http://racing.ap.org

Sato holds off Helio to give Andretti another Indy 500 win

By JENNA FRYER
AP Auto Racing Writer

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – At the end of 500 miles around Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it was a former Formula One driver who took the checkered flag.

He even drove for Andretti Autosport.

It just wasn't Fernando Alonso.

Takuma Sato became the first Japanese winner of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday when the former Formula One driver denied Helio Castroneves a record-tying fourth victory in the closing laps.

"It was a tough, tough race. Helio really drives well," said Sato. "It was a fantastic race, hopefully the crowd enjoyed it."

The Andretti family has struggled for decades to win this race, but as a car owner, Michael Andretti certainly knows the way to victory lane.

Sato's victory gave Andretti a second consecutive win in "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." An Andretti driver has now won the 500 three times in the last four years.

Last year, it was with rookie Alexander Rossi. This time it is with Sato, who joined the team just this season and had largely been overlooked at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Andretti camp expanded to six cars for the 500 to add Alonso, a two-time F1 champion who brought massive European interest to the race.

But six cars never seemed to spread the team too thin, and the main issue facing Andretti Autosport was the reliability of its Honda engines. Alonso put on a thrilling show and even led 27 laps - third most in the race - but he was sent to the paddock when his engine blew with 20 laps remaining.

"We didn't build the thing that was smoking down the front straight," said McLaren boss Zak Brown, who engineered Alonso's trip to Indianapolis. Part of the reason Alonso was able to skip F1's showcase Monaco Grand Prix earlier Sunday for Indy is because the McLaren team - and its Honda power - have grossly underperformed this season and Alonso is not a current title contender.

Alonso did have a spectacular race, and simply fell victim to his engine late in the race. The crowd gave the Spaniard a standing ovation as he climbed from his car.

"I felt the noise, the engine friction, I backed off and I saw the smoke and, yeah, it's a shame," Alonso said. "It's a very nice surprise to come here with big names, big guys, the best in open-wheel racing and be competitive."

He still drank from a carton of milk to close out his experience at Indy, and didn't rule out a potential return.

The Honda teams had a clear horsepower advantage over Chevrolet, but things were dicey in Indy for more than a week and certainly on race day: Before Alonso's failure, 2014 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay lost his Honda and so did Charlie Kimball. Hunter-Reay had led 28 laps and was a strong contender late.

Sato also had to hold off Castroneves in the closing laps. In a Chevrolet for Team Penske, Castroneves briefly took the lead but couldn't make it stick as Sato grabbed it back. Castroneves was disappointed to fall short of the four-time winners club.

"Being second again sucks, being so close to getting my fourth," Castroneves said. "I'm really trying. I'm not giving up this dream and I know it's going to happen."

The margin of victory was 0.2011 seconds - and it was redemption for Sato, who crashed while trying to beat Dario Franchitti on the final lap of the 2012 race.

A joyful Sato dumped a bottle of 2 percent milk over his head, received a kiss from the Indy 500 Princess and raised his finger in the air. Franchitti even stopped by victory lane to congratulate him.

Michael Andretti ran down pit lane to reach Sato's crew, then rushed to hug his driver.

As for the difference between 2012, when Sato crashed in the first turn of the final lap racing Franchitti, Sato said his strategy this year was perfect.

"I was pointing in the right direction into (Turn) One," he said.

Max Chilton finished third, the highest driver for Chip Ganassi Racing, and was followed by former 500 winners Tony Kanaan and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Pole sitter Scott Dixon, already having a rough week because he was robbed at gunpoint at Taco Bell hours after turning the fastest qualifying effort in 21 years, was knocked out of the race in a terrifying crash in which his car sailed through the air and landed cockpit-first atop the inside safety fence. Dixon's car was split in two amid sparks and flames.

The tub of the car remained intact and the 2008 champion was able to climb out on his own to a roar from the crowd. He walked to a waiting ambulance while the race was placed under red flag and crews began to clean up debris scattered over hundreds of feet.

"Just a little beaten up there. It was definitely a rough ride," Dixon said. "We had a great shot. We had gotten a little loose but they had dialed it in."

Dixon had collided with Jay Howard, who blamed the incident on Hunter-Reay. He was a couple of laps down when Hunter-Reay tried to get around him and that forced him to the top of the track, where he wound up hitting the wall.

That impact sent Howard across the track and Dixon had nowhere to go.

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More AP auto racing: http://racing.ap.org

Indianapolis 500
May 28, 2017 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway - Indianapolis, Indiana | 500.0 mi
Pos	Driver	Car #	Make	Started	Laps	Led	Points	Out ?
1	Takuma Sato	26	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	4	200	17	137
2	Helio Castroneves	3	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	19	200	9	96
3	Ed Jones	19	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	11	200	0	93
4	Max Chilton	8	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	15	200	50	86
5	Tony Kanaan	10	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	7	200	22	91
6	Juan Pablo Montoya	22	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	18	200	1	73
7	Alexander Rossi	98	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	3	200	23	91
8	Marco Andretti	27	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	8	200	0	76
9	Gabby Chaves	88	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	25	200	0	53
10	Carlos Munoz	14	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	24	200	0	50
11	Ed Carpenter	20	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	2	200	5	79
12	Graham Rahal	15	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	14	200	2	57
13	Mikhail Aleshin	7	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	13	200	0	55
14	Simon Pagenaud	1	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	23	200	0	43
15	Sebastian Saavedra	17	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	31	200	0	33
16	J.R. Hildebrand	21	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	6	200	2	61
17	Pippa Mann	63	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	28	199	0	32
18	Spencer Pigot	11	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	29	194	0	29
19	Josef Newgarden	2	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	22	186	0	34
20	James Davison	18	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	33	183	2	21	contact
21	Oriol Servia	16	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	12	183	0	40	contact
22	James Hinchcliffe	5	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	17	183	0	33	contact
23	Will Power	12	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	9	183	2	41	contact
24	Fernando Alonso	29	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	5	179	27	47	mechanical
25	Charlie Kimball	83	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	16	166	5	29	mechanical
26	Zach Veach	40	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	32	155	0	12	mechanical
27	Ryan Hunter-Reay	28	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	10	136	28	35	mechanical
28	Sage Karam	24	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	21	125	0	23	mechanical
29	Buddy Lazier	44	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	30	118	0	14	contact
30	Conor Daly	4	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Chevrolet Tires: Firestone	26	65	0	18	contact
31	Jack Harvey	50	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	27	65	0	17	contact
32	Scott Dixon	9	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	1	52	5	53	contact
33	Jay Howard	77	Chassis: Dallara Engine: Honda Tires: Firestone	20	45	0	24	contact

2017 Indianapolis 500 Stats

Scheduled Laps: 200

Distance: 500.000 miles