Josef Newgarden is the newest winner of the prestigious Indianapolis 500, and has been paid a handsome sum for the achievement.
Not only the most coveted race on the schedule, the famous race pays out large amounts of prize money to the winner and anyone who participates in the event.
The veteran’s portion of the prize purse is $3.66 million, which is the largest ever payout to the winner of the race. The purse for the entire 33 car field totaled $17,021,500, which also set a new record.
Last year’s winner Marcus Ericsson took home just over $1 million himself for his second place result, adding a significant amount to his haul from last season.
“This is the greatest race in the world, and it was an especially monumental Month of May featuring packed grandstands and intense on-track action,” Penske Entertainment President and CEO Mark Miles said.
“Now, we have the best end card possible for the 107th Running of the Indianapolis 500: a record-breaking purse for the history books.”
Last year’s purse was also a record-setting sum, which was a specific goal of IndyCar owner Roger Penske when he purchased the series in 2020.
The 2022 Indy 500 prize money totaled just over $16 million for the entire field, with Ericsson taking home $3.1 million on his own.
Prior to the past two years, the largest purse was in 2008 when the total prize money was $14.4 million.
Many different awards from different areas are combined to calculate the total payout figures, and the final numbers are not precisely known until the race itself is complete.
All 33 drivers will receive their awards on Monday evening at the annual Victory Celebration, shortly before they prepare for their next race in Detroit this upcoming weekend.
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