Kiwi driver Scott McLaughlin has continued his impressive start to his sophomore IndyCar season, claiming second place in a heartbreaking finish at the Texas Motor Speedway on Monday (NZ time).
McLaughlin had led for 185 laps of the 248-lap race, only for Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden to snatch the win from his gasp on the last stretch.
Starting in second after qualifying, the former Supercars star showed plenty of composure to jostle clear of his rivals and dominate the majority of the race.
McLaughlin eased off with about a quarter of the race to run, conscious of his fuel consumption.
But after a pit stop, his team gave him the green light to push full pace through the remainder of the contest, setting the scene for its dramatic conclusion.
On the final lap, Newgarden freed himself up from the traffic to make a stunning late push, edging his nose ahead of the Kiwi at the finish line to win by 0.669s. Compatriot Scott Dixon finished fifth.
Nevertheless, McLaughlin takes his second podium in as many races, after his season-opening win at St Petersburg last month - the first of his IndyCar career.
The result also consolidates his place atop the driver standings, ahead of Alex Palou and Will Power.
"Second is a great day but unfortunately we led a lot of laps and, at the end of the day, we lost," McLaughlin told NBC Sports after the race.
"Gutted we couldn't get it done for Chevy… but I learned a lot this race.
"It's going to bode us pretty well going to the speedway but I'm gutted. It'll hurt, that's just how it is. But I'm pretty proud of how we've run.
"I'll learn from this, I'll grow from this and just get on with it. But I thought we put on a good race."
With the benefit of hindsight, McLaughlin regrets not making a late move to block his teammate and friend Newgarden.
"For sure, probably next time now I think about it," he admits.
"But things are happening in a split second, and I'm human and I've gotta learn from it. That's the first opportunity me leading a big race at the end with a guy up my backside
"We didn't do it today and unfortunately that's how it is."
Newgarden, the driver of the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet, notched his 21st career IndyCar victory, while earning Team Penske their 600th win across all racing programs.
"How about Scott… I think he led like 95 percent of the laps," Newgarden said. "I hate doing that to a teammate, but I was going for it, just like he was. We were driving hard."
The series now moves to California for the third race of the season at Long Beach on April 10.
