Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso earned Rookie of the Year honors for the 101st Indianapolis 500 on Monday night during the post-race banquet, but many within the motorsports industry felt the honor should have gone to Ed Jones instead.

The reigning Indy Lights champion finished third behind Takuma Sato and Helio Castroneves, while Alonso was forced to accept 24th due an engine failure just 21 laps away from the finish. Jones finished only a half-second back of the two dueling veterans.

The award is decided by selected media members, based off four criteria. Those include:

Driver skill Sportsmanship Accessibility and conduct throughout the month Finishing position

For his part, Alonso qualified fifth in his Indy 500 debut and even led 27 laps -- third most of anyone on the grid. He was running seventh at the time of his failure, one spot behind Jones, a point of contention from those in the Jones camp.

The Dale Coyne Racing driver caught minimal damage in the Scott Dixon, Jay Howard crash on Lap 45, and the team spent the first half responding to it. That kept him outside of the top-10 until the final scramble for the win.

The Brit spent the early part of the week in the shadows of his four-time champion teammate, Sebastien Bourdais, but carried the Coyne banner admirably once the Frenchman was injured in a qualifying lap.

Jones earned $535,629 for his podium, while Alonso collected $305,805 -- with the added benefit of the $50,000 bonus for his ROY honors.

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Appreciate the support from everyone. At the end of day ROY would have been nice but having fought for the overall win is truly special! — Ed Jones (@Edjonesracing) May 30, 2017

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It’s not just that Ed finished P3. 2nd fastest lap of the event, 5th quickest lap of the race & qualified 11th after teammate’s huge shunt — Steve Wittich (@stevewittich) May 30, 2017

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