What you should know about Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden
Josef Newgarden won the 2023 Indianapolis 500 by 0.0974 seconds over defending champion Marcus Ericsson. Newgarden earned his 27th IndyCar Series victory in his 12th Indy 500 start. The win is team owner Roger Penske's race-record extending 19th.
Here's more of what you should know about Josef Newgarden:
Is Josef Newgarden married?
He and Ashley Welch married in 2019.
Does Josef Newgarden have children?
Kota Nicolai was born in April 2022. "Kota" is inspired by the Japanese words for "happiness" and "good fortune."
Indy 500 updates: How Josef Newgarden wins the 2023 race
Congratulations to Josef and Ashley Newgarden on welcoming their baby boy Kota Nicolai Newgarden. pic.twitter.com/h0fspk2jOz
— INDYCAR on NBC (@IndyCaronNBC) April 19, 2022
What team is Josef Newgarden on?
He is in his seventh year with Team Penske, which is owned by Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar Series owner Roger Penske. Newgarden, who has been in the series for 12 years, has 27 series wins, and he won the 2017 and '19 series championships.
Where is Josef Newgarden from?
He is from Hendersonville, Tennessee, becoming the first Tennessean to win the race.
Josef Newgarden in the Indy 500
Newgarden has competed in the Indy 500 12 times. He tied a record by winning the race for the first time in his 12th try (Sam Hanks, 1957). Newgarden's best previous finish was third place in 2016, and he is the first American to win the race since Alexander Rossi in '16.
Shortly after taking the checkered flag, Newgarden slipped between some fencing to celebrate with fans. He received a ring after the race, but it fell apart as he, his family and team members gathered at the Yard of Bricks for photos.
Year / finish / start / laps led
2012 / 25 / 7 / 0
2013 / 28 / 25 / 0
2014 / 30 / 8 / 0
2015 / 9 / 9 / 0
2016 / 3 / 2 / 14
2017 / 19 / 22 / 0
2018 / 8 / 4 / 3
2019 / 4 / 8 / 21
2020 / 5 / 13 / 0
2021 / 12 / 21 / 0
2022 / 13 / 14 / 0
2023 / 17 / 1 / 5
How much did Josef Newgarden make for winning the Indy 500?
Newgarden earned a record $3.666 million for winning the race. The total purse was a record $17 million.
Josef Newgarden isn't a fan of heights
Newgarden took a media tour of New York two days after the race, making TV appearances and ringing in the NASDAQ trading session for the day. He also posed on a balcony near the top of the Empire State Building. He said tweeted that he had a "death grip" on the railing.
Don’t like heights. As is evident by my death grip on the railing. https://t.co/CckpQbwU6B
— Josef Newgarden (@josefnewgarden) May 30, 2023
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden wife, children, team, nationality
