Alexander Rossi relives goosebump-inducing Indy 500 moment

Alexander Rossi became the 70th Indy 500 race winner, also as a rookie, back in 2016. The infamous Indianapolis track seemed to have been kind to him, reaching stardom overnight. In the latest episode of Doug and Drivers, the 33-year-old opened about how breathtaking the racing spectacle was for a driver.

The California-born driver joined the IndyCar grid in 2016 with the heavyweight of the racing scene, Andretti. However, he had not even scored a podium before the Indy 500 that year.

Rossi had qualified for the race in 11th and was slated to finish outside the top five. However, fate had something different in store for him. As everyone veered into the pits, he stayed on the track and miraculously won the race.

Since then, Rossi has become a fabled driver at the elusive event, but the crowd that gathers at the facility still daunts him. While talking to IMS and IndyCar President Doug Boles, he revealed how he still gets the goosebumps at the Indy 500, witnessing the splurge of the crowd. He said, via Indianapolis Motor Speedway:

"The time where you realize that people are there and the magnitude of the people being there is walking through the Gasoline Alley on your way to the green green room, before driver intros. For me, that's like the coolest experience in sports."

"Coming out from underneath the Gasoline Alley overhang, and you're looking up at the grandstands. And it's full, it just gives me goosebumps thinking about it right now. So, at that point, by the time we're doing the formation laps, it's cool to see it full, but the emotion of all the people being there has kind of already hit you."

On the other hand, since the introduction of the hybrid engines in IndyCar, the 33-year-old has been one of the few drivers to have gotten on top of the new power units.

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Alexander Rossi and Ed Carpenter seem to have different opinions on hybird powertrains

Alexander Rossi at the INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Source: Getty

With hybrids being the new powertrains in the premier class of open-wheel racing in America, many have shared their opinions over the past few months. While some have sided with them, others have ridiculed them, including Ed Carpenter, who has strong opinions against them.

Meanwhile, Carpenter's driver, Alexander Rossi, has a different perspective of the whole situation, and said, via Motorsport Week:

"The hybrid, while it might not be that attractive in its current guise, I think in terms of what we’ve done from a reliability standpoint is pretty impressive... There wasn’t mass hybrid failures in the championship season. That was a huge win."

Alexander Rossi has claimed a tenth and a 9th-place finish in the 2025 campaign so far. He has received these coveted results while being in a midfield car at best, which have helped him increase his stature within the paddock.