“Life comes at you quickly” - F1 fans show no sympathy to Marcus Ericsson losing Indy 500 controversially after his Abu Dhabi 2021 stance

Former F1 driver Marcus Ericsson came close to winning his second Indy 500 title on Sunday (May 28). The 107th running of the Indianapolis 500 saw a final-lap battle between Ericsson and Josef Newgarden, due to a controversial late-race restart.

Due to multiple wrecks in the final laps of the race, officials red-flagged the race with one lap remaining on the restart. Marcus Ericsson was in the lead and wanted the race to finish behind the pace car. However, Ericsson missed out on being a two-time champion as the race went green later on.

Josef Newgarden overtook the reigning champion on the final lap to claim his first Indy 500 title. While Newgarden rejoiced in his achievement, Ericsson was upset with IndyCar's decision to put on a final lap showdown, claiming that it wasn't safe to restart on cold tires.

The late race restart was eerily similar to the controversial finish in the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP. Ericsson had commented on that race two years ago, congratulating the winner Max Verstappen.

After Ericsson expressed his concern over the restart in the Indy 500, F1 fans quickly unearthed Ericsson's tweet, blaming him for his hypocrisy.

Here are a few reactions from the fans.

Some compared the Swede's situation to Lewis Hamilton's in the final lap of the F1 title decider in 2021.

Ericsson's comments inspired mixed reactions from fans as some supported his view on the restart. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver was ahead when the final caution period began. If the race had finished behind the pace car, he could have won the race.

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What did Ex-F1 driver Marcus Ericsson say after the race?

Marcus Ericsson lost out on the final lap as he finished 0.097 seconds behind winner Josef Newgarden. Ericsson was left in dismay after the race as he had to fight to keep his position in the final lap.

The former Alfa-Romeo F1 driver said:

"I think it wasn’t enough laps to go to do what we did. I don’t think it’s safe to go out of the pits on cold tires for a restart when half the field is sort of still trying to get out on track when we go green.

"I don’t think it’s a fair way to end the race. I don’t think it’s a right way to end the race. So I can’t agree with that."

He added:

"I don’t think it was enough laps to go when the yellow came, so I think it should have finished under yellow. I think it was a tough way to end the race. I don’t really agree with how we did that. I don’t think that was a fair way to end the race. But I’m proud of our effort."

Race winner Newgarden, however, dismissed Ericsson's comments about the unsafe late restart. Unfortunately for the Swede, he isn't getting much sympathy from fans also.