LAS VEGAS -- Dan Wheldon, the 2011 Indianapolis 500 winner and one of the most popular drivers in open-wheel racing, died Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in a horrific multicar crash on Lap 11 of the IndyCar Series season finale.

Officials decided to call the race, but the drivers, many sobbing openly, did a five-lap tribute to Wheldon. IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard made the official…