Armstrong started 16th on the grid and spent most of the race in the top 10. However, he came into contention in the last quarter when pit strategy started to work into his favour.
The 25-year-old took the lead after a restart with seven laps to go before another caution forced the cars to slow.
Armstrong, who has never won an Indycar race, was unable to hold onto the lead on the final lap as Felix Rosenqvist and David Malukas swept past with slipstram advantage and raced to the chequered flag.
In the dramatic end to the race McLaughlin came through to grab his best finish in the Indy 500, while Armstrong faded to fifth.
The third New Zealander, Sir Scott Dixon, led during the middle part of the race, but he needed to pit for fuel with a handful of laps remaining and slipped to 15th.
There were a record 17 lead changes during the race and included a complete stop when rain started to fall and Dixon was in front.
Rosenqvist, of Sweden, finished 0.0233 seconds ahead of Malukas, the closest finish in the history of the Indianapolis 500.
This story was first published on rnz.co.nz |  |
