Team Penske's Newgarden and Penske receive their Baby Borg Indy 500 trophies

Greenfield Village — On Memorial Day weekend last year, Josef Newgarden won the Indy 500 for Team Penske. On Tuesday night, Newgarden and team Roger Penske came to Detroit to accept their “Baby Borg” trophies to commemorate the triumph.

For Newgarden it was his first, for Penske — his 19th.

“To be at the Indy 500 and win the race For Roger is something I will cherish for the rest of my life,” said Newgarden, cradling the trophy in his hands at The Henry Ford Museum. “It took me 12 attempts to win, which is a lesson of never give up. You have to work as a team — you have to run the perfect race.”

With the museum’s “Driven to Win” exhibit — which includes such iconic Indy 500-winning cars as Jim Clark’s 1965 Lotus — as the backdrop, Newgarden and Penske celebrated the moment with sponsors, including engine supplier Chevrolet and Borg Warner (the turbocharger manufacturer). General Motors President Mark Reuss and Motorsports Chief Jim Campbell were among those in the audience.

“Think of the history in this museum going back to the start of the automobile,” said Penske when it was his turn at the podium. “Josef, I know how badly you wanted to win this. Indianapolis is not an easy place to commit to.”

Along with the Stanley Cup, the Borg Warner is one of the most famous trophies in sport. The massive, sterling silver trophy stands just over 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weighs 110 pounds. Commissioned for the 1936 race, the trophy bears small busts of every driver to win the 500 (including retroactively to the 1911 winner). Only one non-race winner’s face is affixed to the trophy: Anton “Tony” Hulman, the owner of the International Motor Speedway from 1945 to 1977.

Newgarden sat for his likeness on the trophy shortly after his in last year with sculptor William Behrends in North Carolina. His likeness is fixed to the base of he trophy with the last Team Penske winner — Will Power in 2018 — nearby. Former Team Penske driver Helio Castroneves has won the 500 four times — and has four tiny busts on the trophy. The current trophy has space available for the race winners through 2033 at which time the base will likely be expanded.

Borg Warner CEO Fred Lissalde presented the inscribed, so-called Baby Borg trophies to the Team Penske duo. While the Borg Warner trophy resides at the Indy 500 museum, the smaller replicas are for the winners to keep in their trophy cases.

"I was with Josef the evening before the race,” Lissalde smiled. “I saw a strong-minded Josef.”

Newgarden’s win would be the fourth-closest Indy 500 finish in history, as he passed defending champ Marcus Ericsson going into the last lap and held him off at the finish line after a furious 500 miles and three hours of racing at average speeds of 220 mph.

Newgarden would finish the 2023 fifth in the points standings with wins at Indy, Texas, and Iowa. The 2024 season starts on March 10 in St. Petersburg, Fla. with the Indy 500 124 days away in May. The Detroit Grand Prix immediately follows Indy.

“I’m ready to win No. 2 at Indy and Roger his 20th,” smiled Newgarden, telling the crowd this was his first visit to The Henry Ford.

“Josef, I want to win No. 20 as bad as you do,” Penske replied.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.