Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Speedway, Ind.) — Just who is Felix Rosenqvist?
The 34-year-old Swede has a variety of racing experiences, but the most enjoyable one came Sunday when he won the Indianapolis 500 by the narrowest margin in race history.
He won with a Morgan Wallen paint job on his No. 60 car. His car often has musical bands on it because former SiriusXM CEO Jim Meyer is a co-owner of the Meyer Shank Racing team. He also became a new father on May 4 when his daughter, Stella, was born, the first child for Rosenqvist and his wife, Emille.
The winner showing off his Indy 500 jewelry.
But what makes him tick? And why is he so relatable?
About three hours after his Indianapolis 500 win, he sat down with me to help us understand.
Bob Pockrass: Who is Felix Rosenqvist?
Rosenqvist: A father and an Indy 500 winner from Sweden that has fought extremely hard for this moment for eight years [in INDYCAR].
How would your wife describe you?
Good question. She’d probably say that I’m the kindest person ever.
She wouldn’t be the only one who says that. A lot of people say that. Does this mean that nice guys can finish first?
I think so. It’s a win for the nice guys today.
Why are you so nice like this? Sometimes nice isn’t best in racing?
It’s probably been my biggest enemy, one of my biggest enemies in my career. But it’s also probably a reason why I have a career as well. So, I’ve always kind of seen it as you are who you are, can’t really change it. I’m comfortable being who I am, and as you saw today, I’m not going to race [rough] — a lot of these guys from my buddies. I raced them hard wheel to wheel. You are who you are.
Was fellow INDYCAR driver Pato O’Ward the best man at your wedding?
He was, yeah.
So is he your closest friend?
I have obviously my like core friend group from Sweden, but I haven’t lived in Sweden since I was 25 and I’m [close to] 35 now, so it’s 10 years. But we still stay really tight, and Pato is definitely my best friend here in my sort of second chapter of my life in the United States.
Fellow INDYCAR driver Pato O’Ward is one of Felix Rosenqvist’s closest friends.
He’s a nice guy too, or what is it about Pato?
I just love Pato. He’s just very straight-up. He’s a no bulls**** guy, which I like to surround myself with — no bull**** people. He just tells you how it is, and he’s very open, and we’ve had a lot of fun. Having him as a teammate was a blast. I definitely miss those days.
How many Morgan Wallen songs do you know?
Whiskey Glasses. I think that’s going to go on repeat tonight.
How many of the bands on your car do you know and how many do you have to go to iTunes and listen?
I’d say 85 percent I know pretty well because I think the team tries to line me up with musicians that I really like. Having Creed, and Ozzy [Osbourne] that kind of genre. Creed was great. We had them here last year, and they were here for the whole month. They had brought their families. I’ve always loved Creed. It was actually one of the first songs I’ve downloaded. My sister showed it to me when I was like 10. And then to meet those guys, and they’re as chill as you, like we just sat like this, talking about amps and trips to Sweden and stuff like that. It’s quite the joy to be able to represent all these artists with SiriusXM, and I feel like we just keep knocking out of the park with all these partners. The fans love it. They always come up to me. It’s very smart marketing.
The Creed scheme is one of Felix Rosenqvist’s favorites.
So what’s more stressful being in the hospital room for childbirth, or going into the final lap of the Indy 500 in fourth as you did Sunday?
Believe it or not, but being in the hospital. You can’t describe that feeling. It’s just something to have such an extreme emotional response two times in the same month with completely different emotions. Because when you have a child, you’re obviously crying because you’re happy, and now you’re also sad because this little thing like needs you to survive. And you love your wife 10 times more now because it’s just so much love and emotions. And then this is just like a badass manly like we did it kind of emotion. It’s hard to describe.
Can you tell me how you picked the name Stella?
It was actually the only name. We downloaded an app, and we went through maybe 100 names, and Stella, we both were like, “Oh, that’s cool.” And then we had dinner with some friends. We asked her daughter what we should name the kid, or the child, whatever you call it, and she said “Stella. And we’re like, Ok, cool, and we were pretty much after that, that’s it, So we kind of knew it for months that we’re going to name her Stella.
Felix Rosenqvist and wife, Emille, recently became parents to daughter Stella. (via Rosenqvist’s Instagram)
Your bio lists your hobbies as skiing, skateboarding, and hiking. Which one will you miss the most now that you have to take care of a baby?
Not sure who put hiking on there, but it’s definitely not one of my hobbies. Skiing, I used to compete in skiing, but I haven’t skied in like 10 years here. So I don’t really have any hobbies. I just love hanging out with my wife — and now my daughter.
Were you a professional skier?
Not, I didn’t get paid to ski. But I was competing at a high level until go-karting became more fun.
And why was the go-karting more fun than the skiing?
I was a big car guy. I just loved cars. Me and my dad, all I talked about was cars. But skiing is very similar, downhill skiing — it’s pretty much the same thing with the lines and the speed and the apex and all that. The two of them kind of merged perfectly together.
So if you were a car guy, was racing for two years in Formula E fun, or did you need the roar of the engine?
It’s weird because I really enjoyed driving it. I probably didn’t enjoy watching it as much. That’s probably the best way I can describe it. I think the noise is something you miss. But just like this, it was super competitive, and when you’re a driver, you don’t really care too much about it. You’re so in your bubble, you’re trying to perform. But there was a reason I came over here, because I kind of missed the adrenaline. Those cars are way quicker now.
From go-karting to INDYCAR, Felix Rosenqvist can now call himself an Indy 500 champion.
Is there anything that you will miss doing now that you’re a dad?
No, because I’m a homie guy, and my wife is, too. We don’t party. We go on trips. But you can do that with your baby. They always say you’re not ready to have a kid, but I feel actually we were. We were very ready. This kid was extremely wanted.
Were you worried before the 500 that, oh, that baby’s going to come on the day of the 500?
This is funny because before you have a kid, you don’t know what it’s like. And I was like, if I miss it, I’ll still have a baby, cool. Like I had no idea. And then after we got her, and actually got to spend the four days there, and do all the things, and my wife did a C-section, so I had to pretty much be a mom for four days. I was just so happy I got to do that. And if we have another kid, I can assure you, it’s not going to be during May.
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