Munoz emotional after tough loss: "I don't want second; I want to win"

In just his fourth Indy 500 appearance, Munoz had to settle for second again.

But this race was different than his stellar 2013 performance. He was the driver in the catbird seat, until he wasn't.

His teammate and Indy 500 rookie, Alexander Rossi, undercut his efforts by playing the fuel-mileage game. Rossi somehow stretching his final run to 36 laps, only running out after the checkered flag.

"I knew I had this one," Munoz said after collecting himself. He crossed the finish line 4.4975 seconds back of Rossi and running considerably faster. 

"I was really disappointed when it comes (down to) fuel and you lose the race because of that. I was really disappointed (to) get second. Half a lap short. That's what it took.

"It wasn't our day, if I'm honest. My team never was in the fight. But this is racing. We have to congratulate him. It's part of the racing, strategy and everything.

"What can I say? The only thing I'm clear about (is) that I will win this race one day."

Fuel gamble wasn't an option

Gambling on fuel wasn't an option for the Colombian, who explained that he would have run out. When he faced the realization that Rossi wasn't going to stop, Munoz was nothing less than stunned.

"I don't know how my teammate did it without stopping. If I'm honest, I want to know what he did. I will look. I am second, why (is) he not stopping? He's supposed to stop. I have to look and see what he did. I don't know what he did.

"But, man, it was a close one. I think me and Newgarden had the win, we were so strong. But happy for the team, 1-2 Andretti, 1-2 Honda."

He then added, "I cannot say I'm really happy, I'm just really sad and disappointed."

The 24-year-old was the man to beat at the end of the race. He passed several frontrunners, taking the lead before his final pit stop.

"In my mind I was really strong in the end of the race," Munoz said. "I knew I was a little bit stronger than Newgarden. The engine was pulling so good."

In order to save as much time as possible, he didn't take tires during his splash-and-go, something that left him on the razor edge.

"But, you know, at the end the fuel was playing," Munoz added. "In the end I was pushing the last three laps with the same set of tires. I don't know how many laps. I was all over the place on the rear. I'm going to keep it flat. If I crash, I crash.

"I don't want second; I want to win."