With lightning and downpours in Sunday’s forecast, which currently calls for nearly two inches of rain to land on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mother Nature might derail Kyle Larson’s plans of competing in both the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s 600-mile …
With lightning and downpours in Sunday’s forecast, which currently calls for nearly two inches of rain to land on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mother Nature might derail Kyle Larson’s plans of competing in both the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s 600-mile race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The latest prediction for Sunday has a 50-percent chance of foul weather descending on IMS almost two hours before the 12:45pm ET green flag and staying into the early evening, which could push the 200-lap contest to Monday.
To prepare themselves for the possibility of losing Larson to the needs of his full-time job in NASCAR on Sunday, the Arrow McLaren team and the IndyCar Series have started discussing options to keep the No. 17 Hendrickcars.com Arrow McLaren Chevy in the field if the skies open and force Larson to leave for North Carolina.
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Arrow McLaren sporting director Tony Kanaan has been the team’s backup plan in recent months. With the injury to former driver David Malukas, the 2013 Indy 500 winner was one of the primary options to step into the No. 6 Chevy, but that role was filled by Callum Ilott.
Although the team and the series weren’t ready to offer any official statements, both confirmed to RACER that they’re evaluating a possible refresher run for Kanaan — who did his Indy 500 farewell with Arrow McLaren last year and finished 16th — later this week.
If it were to rain on Sunday, but dry enough for the race to start after Larson needed to leave, Kanaan would be cleared to drive after a refresher is completed. If rain were to delay the 500 until the day after the Charlotte NASCAR race, the team and Larson would need to decide how they wanted to proceed.
Rick Hendrick also alluded to the possibility of keeping Larson in Indy at the expense of competing in the Cup race.
“We’ve talked about it many times, and we know we need to be at Charlotte for the points,” Hendrick said. “We’re just going to let it play out, and then Kyle and myself and Jeff Gordon, we’ll make that decision Sunday.
“The pressure of being in the race and starting with a great starting spot and knowing we’ve got the 600 to run, it’s going to be pressure all day. How does the race go? Is it going to rain? What time do we have to leave to get back to Charlotte? This is going to be a tremendous amount of pressure, but we signed up for it. We’re in the race. We qualified. Kyle is a heck of a talent. I just hope that the weather cooperates and we get to finish the race.”
RACER also understands a scenario where Kanaan is not used as Larson’s backup is being contemplated and the bumped Dale Coyne Racing driver Nolan Siegel, who is approved to race without needing to do a special session in the car, could be drafted in to pilot the No. 17 Chevy. Siegel is no stranger to McLaren CEO Zak Brown, who co-owns the United Autosports sports car team Siegel will drive for next month in the LMP2 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The precedent of using a bumped driver was seen as recently as 2023 when Stefan Wilson was injured and unable to drive for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports after being hit from behind during post-qualifying practice. The bumped Graham Rahal was recruited to drive Wilson’s No. 24 Chevy, which was moved from its 25th starting spot to the back of the field. If such a situation plays out with Larson and the No. 17 Chevy which qualified fifth, Siegel would be expected to start 33rd.
Arrow McLaren would love nothing more than for David Malukas to be in the No. 6 Chevy this weekend at Long Beach. And next week at Barber Motorsports Park, and for the month of May at Indianapolis. Like his team, the irreverent 22-year-old from …
Arrow McLaren would love nothing more than for David Malukas to be in the No. 6 Chevy this weekend at Long Beach. And next week at Barber Motorsports Park, and for the month of May at Indianapolis. Like his team, the irreverent 22-year-old from Illinois is also pining to start his season. But the injuries he sustained in his left hand and wrist from a pre-season crash while mountain biking have not been sympathetic to those desires.
Given a six-week recovery period by his doctors after undergoing surgery on February 13 to repair the extensive damage, the process has reached a full eight weeks without crossing the finish line. To the frustration of Malukas, the healing just isn’t happening as swiftly as he’d hoped. Forced to miss his third race weekend of the year, Malukas finds himself in a maddening place where an established timeline to drive the No. 6 Chevy no longer exists.
“It’s taking longer than we wanted, but we’re still doing everything that we can,” Malukas told RACER at Long Beach.
Left to focus on the areas of rehabilitation that will rebuild strength in his arm while isolating the affected areas, Malukas is in a steady cycle of daily physical rehabilitation to prepare himself for an eventual return to action.
“The main goal right now is trying to do every single muscle outside of the wrist. And that’s still an area where we’re having to wait,” he said. “So we’ve been using a BFR (blood flow restriction) cuff which slightly cuts blood flow off on the hand. It’s almost like adding resistance without adding too much weight. It’s very cool. So we’ve been doing that to get bicep and tricep strength back. And obviously, there’s just all these other little muscles; it’s interesting how many muscles there are in the hand.”
He’ll continue undergoing a race-by-race evaluation by IndyCar’s medical team, and while it’s impossible to rule Malukas out from any upcoming event, the recalcitrant nature of his injury means it won’t come as a surprise if he’s sidelined for at least another month, which would encroach on his ability to compete in the Indianapolis 500.
Still, there’s optimism for his future at Arrow McLaren; as soon as Malukas is ready to climb in and attack without limitations, he’ll pick up where temporary replacements Callum Ilott and Theo Pourchaire leave off.
“That’s not a question. David is under contract. He’s our choice. He was supposed to be in the car for Race 1,” said a matter-of-fact Tony Kanaan, Arrow McLaren’s sporting director.
Malukas has a solid routine in place to manage the physical side of what’s needed to get back to racing. Handling the mental and emotional side, with the constant race-by-race hope to participate in his first race for Arrow McLaren — nearly nine months after he signed to drive for the team — has been the hardest part to handle.
“Obviously, there’s been moments up and downwards, and we wanted it to be a bit quicker, so mentally, it’s a little bit tough,” he said. “But the team has been amazing. Everybody’s super supportive and on my side, so it makes me feel a lot better.”
Tony Kanaan knows all too well what Malukas is going through. Gavin Baker/Lumen
On Arrow McLaren’s side, the Gavin Ward-led team is taking every measure that’s available to help Malukas because it wants him to join teammates Pato O’Ward and Alexander Rossi in the roster spot he was given.
Kanaan is responsible for handling Arrow McLaren’s drivers, and with the need to prepare for two eventualities at each race — where backup drivers are being put on standby for the next for the rest of April and May — he’s also charged with keeping Malukas’s mental state in the right place as they wait for his wrist and hand to mend.
“The biggest issue right now is we need to take care of David. I’ve been through this, unfortunately,” said Kanaan, whose career was paused more than once due to injury. “We need to take care of David’s head to focus on: ‘You just need to get better.’ Now, the uncertainty? Nobody — none of the doctors, nobody — knows when that’s gonna happen. The timeline, it’s something that we all are searching for.
“Because as a driver, you’re looking for the deadline, you’re looking for the last lap, you’re looking to the fastest recovery. We’re a different breed. And then when somebody explains to you that it might take longer…that is what I’m balancing with David. I said, ‘Don’t set the timeline in your head. Don’t let that affect you. Let it be clear. All you need to do right now is ask yourself what you can do to be better.’”
Over the last two months since the accident and surgery took place, Kanaan has become like a big brother to Malukas.
“We’re actually having our physio guy spending 80 percent of his time with David,” Kanaan added. “I’m going to the doctor’s appointments with him; I’m driving him there. I went to my place, got a full sim rig, put it in my truck and drove it to his house so he can have one to use. We’re doing everything we can.”
And there’s the tough reality Malukas has been presented with that Kanaan is having to handle.
It’s only natural for Malukas to feel exposed while he sits and watches other drivers pilot the car he’s meant to represent for Arrow McLaren. Malukas isn’t at risk of losing his seat, but at the same time, there’s also the potential for a strange and uncomfortable decision to make if an Ilott or a Pourchaire puts in a star performance or wins a race.
Having to watch Theo Pourchaire in the Arrow McLaren Chevrolet he should be driving brings adds to the challenge facing Malukas. Michael Levitt/Lumen
With sponsors to service and represent to the best of their ability with the No. 6 Chevy, there’s the unflinching need to always do what’s best for those who make fielding the car possible.
Kanaan cites his friend Helio Castroneves, the four-time Indy 500 winner, whose trial for tax evasion in the late 2000s made it impossible to drive; his boss Roger Penske hired an out-of-work Will Power to fill in and he was soon hired for a full-time role. Power’s been with Penske ever since and has gone on to win Indy and two championships since 2009.
“You’ve got to think about the message you’re sending to the team, right?” Kanaan said. “We’re supporting David. At the same time, I can’t leave a car without a driver. Every race car driver, the first fear when you get hurt is you want to get back into the car because you love what you do, but the first priority is because you don’t want anybody else driving it, because one race can change your life. Helio was about to go to jail, they put Power in the car, Power won the race. Luckily, Penske could run both of them (when Castroneves was done with the trial). Otherwise, Helio was gonna be out.
“This is all caused by the uncertainty of the injury. The whole explanation is, we’re behind him. But every time we put somebody in that car, it is a risk. Not that we’re gonna kick him out, but it will be a discussion. But he’s in the shop every day. He’s part of this team. You can see on social media, he’s in almost every post. There is no more we can do for him. Now, things that we can’t control are happening but we still need to run the car as best as we can.”
Kanaan closed the conversation by reiterating Arrow McLaren’s central position on the Malukas situation. The odds of seeing him race anytime soon are slim, but everyone is committed to making it come to fruition.
“If people think we’re making it a mystery with who we put in the car each time, well, not really,” he said. “We need to get ahead of the game, so we did bring Theo in two weeks ago. And Theo is in the car because Callum is racing in WEC this weekend, otherwise he would have been driving. We don’t want to keep doing these changes; we’re not testing drivers. We’re actually just filling the gap the best we can while waiting for David to come back.
“I told him, ‘Your biggest challenge will be when you think you’re ready. But we need to evaluate how ready you are. Because for you to come back too soon and run 20th is going to do you more harm. But we’re behind you.’”
Tony Kanaan got to drive his hero Ayrton Senna’s world championship-winning 1991 McLaren MP4/6 at Sonoma Raceway during the 2023 edition of the Velocity Invitational vintage event and shared his thoughts about the run with RACER’s Marshall Pruett …
Tony Kanaan got to drive his hero Ayrton Senna’s world championship-winning 1991 McLaren MP4/6 at Sonoma Raceway during the 2023 edition of the Velocity Invitational vintage event and shared his thoughts about the run with RACER’s Marshall Pruett after using all of the 3.5-liter V12 Honda engine.
Tony Kanaan got to see his favorite car, the 1991 McLaren MP4/6 driven to a world championship by his friend and hero Ayrton Senna, for the first time up close at Sonoma Raceway for the 2023 edition of the Velocity Invitational vintage event, and …
Tony Kanaan got to see his favorite car, the 1991 McLaren MP4/6 driven to a world championship by his friend and hero Ayrton Senna, for the first time up close at Sonoma Raceway for the 2023 edition of the Velocity Invitational vintage event, and shares his memories and emotions after viewing the legend’s final F1 title-winner.
Purdue University has entered a partnership with the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) series to introduce its new urban campus in Indianapolis. Coming off the approval to dissolve IUPUI and launch Purdue University in Indianapolis in 2024, with …
Purdue University has entered a partnership with the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) series to introduce its new urban campus in Indianapolis.
Coming off the approval to dissolve IUPUI and launch Purdue University in Indianapolis in 2024, with multiple locations throughout the city and degrees from Purdue University West Lafayette, the iconic Boilermaker gold and black will adorn the race car shared by Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan in this season’s SRX series, which launches Thursday, July 13 and will air weekly on Thursday nights thereafter through Aug. 17, with all races airing live on ESPN.
Purdue has helped launch racing careers for many of its students and graduates with its unique motorsports engineering program. Created in 2008, it is the only accredited undergraduate program in the U.S. and one of three in the world that awards degrees with a concentration in motorsports. Purdue’s motorsports history also extends across its West Lafayette campus, where College of Engineering graduates Matt Kuebel and Mike Koenigs became Indianapolis 500 winners this past May as race engineers for Josef Newgarden and Team Penske, while fellow alumna and Chip Ganassi Racing engineer Angela Ashmore made history as the first female crew member to win the 500 in 2022 with Marcus Ericsson.
“I am very excited to be back at SRX and having Purdue University in Indianapolis on the car and sharing it with my brother T.K. is just perfect,” said Castroneves.
“This is my third year in SRX and I couldn’t be more excited to share the car with my brother Helio and now being sponsored by Purdue University in Indianapolis,” Kanaan said. “As an Indy resident, it’s a big deal. Purdue has long been a part of the Indianapolis 500, so I’m looking forward to carrying their livery during the SRX season.”
Ethan Braden, executive vice president and chief marketing and communications officer for Purdue University and Purdue Global, said the university’s deep ties to motorsports and commitment to expanding the university’s academic and research excellence with the launch of Purdue University in Indianapolis makes the SRX partnership with Indy icons Kanaan and Castroneves a natural fit.
“Purdue University is about the persistent pursuit of innovation, and our new urban campus in Indianapolis is one of our next great examples,” Braden said. “We are thrilled to introduce Purdue University in Indianapolis to millions of viewers on ESPN by partnering with the SRX Series. And we couldn’t team up with better symbols of excellence and determination than Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan. Boilermakers worldwide will be cheering them on as they lead Purdue University’s charge on some of America’s most iconic racetracks and into Indianapolis.”
Player Management International, and Doug Barnette, was the agency of record on the deal.
A month on from his final NTT IndyCar Series race with Arrow McLaren at the Indy 500, the popular Brazilian has become a permanent fixture at the team in the capacity of Special Advisor. The 2004 series champion and 2013 Indianapolis 500 winner will …
A month on from his final NTT IndyCar Series race with Arrow McLaren at the Indy 500, the popular Brazilian has become a permanent fixture at the team in the capacity of Special Advisor.
The 2004 series champion and 2013 Indianapolis 500 winner will travel with the team to races and tests, serving as a driver mentor while also working with the team’s commercial partnerships and business development.
“I’m thrilled to have Tony join Arrow McLaren and our McLaren Racing family in a more formalized capacity following his brilliant IndyCar career,” said McLaren CEO Zak Brown. “He’s a racer, and he knows how to win. Having him around our team and mentoring our drivers can only make us stronger contenders in the NTT IndyCar Series championship.”
Kanaan is a 17-time race winner with 389 IndyCar starts to his credit, and has also long been recognized by for his value in sponsorship development. Arrow McLaren Racing Director Gavin Ward said all that experience will be a huge asset to the team as it works to cement its place among IndyCar’s top tier.
“Tony’s distinct skillset will help the team connect how we go racing to how we can make the most of our partnerships,” he said. “As a championship driver, he does both incredibly well – delivering on track and locking in committed partnerships. He brings a champion mindset to what we’re doing – and that’s racing to win championships while having fun doing it. Having him on the team as a multifaceted resource in his advisor role is a big win for Arrow McLaren.”
In addition to his IndyCar responsibilities, Kanaan will also be involved in McLaren Racing’s heritage program.
“I had said that I wasn’t going to leave racing or the NTT IndyCar Series, so I’m very excited to join the Arrow McLaren team in this role,” Kanaan said.
“Zak and Gavin have a great vision for where this team is headed and what we can accomplish, so I look forward to helping us get there and making the team and the series even better.
“This team works hard and has a lot of fun. That’s what racing is about, and it’s why I love being part of the team.”
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown hopes Tony Kanaan’s final Indianapolis 500, spent in an Arrow McLaren Chevy, isn’t the Brazilian’s first and last time as an employee of the Indiana-based outfit. As Chip Ganassi Racing has Dario Franchitti and Team …
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown hopes Tony Kanaan’s final Indianapolis 500, spent in an Arrow McLaren Chevy, isn’t the Brazilian’s first and last time as an employee of the Indiana-based outfit.
As Chip Ganassi Racing has Dario Franchitti and Team Penske has Rick Mears in advisory roles where the experience gained during their numerous IndyCar championships and Indy 500 wins is put to use to benefit their respective organizations, Brown sees Kanaan — a champion and Indy winner as well — as a perfect component to accelerate Arrow McLaren’s rise.
“I’ve known Tony a long time, and he is a champion on and off the track,” Brown told RACER. “We’re definitely exploring what type of ongoing role he could have in contributing to our team’s success. Nothing’s definitive yet, but certainly the intention is, while that may have been his last Indy 500, it wasn’t his last involvement with Arrow McLaren. And I think he very much feels the same.”
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Brown, team director Gavin Ward, and Kanaan are due to discuss the various ways the Indianapolis-based ace might enrich a team that already has former IndyCar front-runner Robert Wickens working in a advisory role.
Brown believes enabling his drivers to draw on Kanaan’s experience in the manner of a Franchitti or Mears would be a major benefit, Phillip Abbott/Motorsport Images
“We don’t know yet what it might be, but if we were to do something, what are the areas that we think he can add value? What are the areas he thinks he can add value,” Brown continued. “What we agreed was to get through the month of May, because I very much wanted to just have him be a racing car driver for the month of May, and now that that May is behind us, that’s a conversation Gavin, me, and Tony will start to pick up.
“I think Dario is a big contributor to his race team’s success because when you get a champion like that, there’s so many different areas they can contribute with their experience. So whether it’s like [Mercedes F1 had with the late] Niki Lauda, Rick Mears at Penske, Gil de Ferran in our Formula 1 team, I’m a believer that world champion drivers with a lot of experience can help teams in a variety of ways, given their experience where they know what great looks like and they know what bad looks like. I think that’s where champion drivers can add a lot of value to a racing team.”
For Kanaan, who grew up idolizing three-time F1 world champion Ayrton Senna, the deep collection of his late countryman’s McLaren F1 cars which are used in various demonstration runs each year would be a natural draw if he is signed to an ongoing contract with the team. Brown knows any contract with Kanaan will come with seat time in the late legend’s vintage open-wheelers.
“I’ve found a commonality behind all my drivers in that,” Brown said with a laugh. “They all want to drive the toys…and if any of them think I haven’t figured it out, they don’t know me…”
“Last year, we were like $1 short, and this year, we had $1 in our pocket; we were cruising,” McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown told RACER after his four-car Indy 500 program flexed its muscles and led 76 of 200 laps before its leading contenders Pato …
“Last year, we were like $1 short, and this year, we had $1 in our pocket; we were cruising,” McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown told RACER after his four-car Indy 500 program flexed its muscles and led 76 of 200 laps before its leading contenders Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist crashed on their own.
Arrow McLaren’s top performer on the day was a visibly frustrated Alexander Rossi, who placed fifth, and behind him, in his Indy 500 farewell, Tony Kanaan had an average day, crossing the finish line in 15th. Minus Rosenqvist’s crash on lap 183 and O’Ward’s overambitious attempt to take the lead from Marcus Ericsson on lap 192, Brown and the Chevy-powered team might have had a say in who won the race.
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“We had a fuel issue on Pato’s car that ended up not becoming an issue at the end, but I think we had those two cars, and Rossi there or thereabouts, but we didn’t get it done,” Brown added. “But I think the upside is we had the cars to win. We were flying and they were having fun. It was like, ‘You lead for a few laps, then you lead for a few laps.’
“They were so hooked up. The results are disappointing, but other than that, what an awesome Indy 500. We were fast and had two cars that were on for the win, and Rossi was right there too.
Brown applauded his team for their year-to-year improvement, led by the engineering-first structure overseen by Gavin Ward.
“Couldn’t be happier,” he said. “We are a threat to win every weekend with multiple cars that are threatening for the championship. It wasn’t a good points day for us, but I couldn’t be happier. I think Gavin and the whole team have stepped up. There were definitely a better team than we were last year.”
Tony Kanaan, for whom today’s Indianapolis 500 was the 390th and final race in his IndyCar career, admits he shed a tear when his longtime rival Helio Castroneves saluted him on the slowdown lap. The 2013 Indy 500 winner whose Arrow McLaren …
Tony Kanaan, for whom today’s Indianapolis 500 was the 390th and final race in his IndyCar career, admits he shed a tear when his longtime rival Helio Castroneves saluted him on the slowdown lap.
The 2013 Indy 500 winner whose Arrow McLaren Chevrolet started the race from ninth, finished 16th after a last-lap battle with four-time winner Castroneves. Afterward, Kanaan described himself as “grateful, relieved, happy, sad at the same time. There are so many emotions right now.”
He went on: “I told the guys before we started it was either going to be a win, or anything apart from the win we were going to celebrate regardless.
“I think I would do a disgrace to almost 400,000 people that were there, that made me feel the way they did, to say I’m sad. I had a laugh.
“Helio and I battling for 15th and 16th on the last lap like we’re going for the lead! It was like, who’s playing pranks with us? We went side by side on the backstretch after the checker and we saluted with each other, and I just told him actually I dropped a tear because of that, and he said, ‘I did, too…’
“We started it in ’87, and the last lap of the race we’re actually battling – my last race in IndyCar and we’re battling like it was for the lead. But I wouldn’t have it any different; neither to him.”
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He later added: “We were battling on the last lap, the last restart. We went side-by-side twice. A lot of memories came to my mind, and I even said how ironic it is that we started it together and I get to battle him on the last lap of my last race.
“It’s pretty neat. It’s a pretty cool story. He’s a great friend; my reference — a guy that I love and hate a lot throughout my career! And like he just told me, ‘Who am I going to look (at) on the time sheet when I come into the pits now?’ Because we always said that it didn’t matter if I was 22nd and he was 23rd, my day was OK, and vice versa.
“Yeah, it was pretty cool.”
Kanaan said that he was relieved that his 22nd and final Indy 500 was run in front of the race’s biggest crowd since 2016, rather than the empty grandstands seen in 2020 – due to the COVID-19 pandemic – in what was supposed to be his final year.
“One thing is for certain — I think I sat here three years ago and I said I’m not retiring because I don’t want to race in (front of) an empty stand,” he said. “What (the fans) did for me today puts an end of me coming back here. Because that experience right there, I don’t think I will have it ever again.
“In a way, finishing 16th will take everybody’s idea out – ‘Oh, you finished third, you should do it again.’ Kyle Larson is driving that car next year. Hopefully I will be around.”
Marcus Ericsson’s disappointment at his narrow defeat to Josef Newgarden in Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 was compounded by what he believes was a wrong call from race control to throw a late red flag and set up a single-lap sprint to the finish to …
Marcus Ericsson’s disappointment at his narrow defeat to Josef Newgarden in Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 was compounded by what he believes was a wrong call from race control to throw a late red flag and set up a single-lap sprint to the finish to avoid the race ending under caution.
Ericsson took the lead on the previous restart with five laps to go, only for another crash towards the rear of the field to force the race to be halted again. Rather than continuing to keep the field circulating under yellow, race control stopped the race during the clean-up. The cars were sent out again on lap 198 for a lap behind the pace car before going green for the final lap, whereupon Newgarden got a run on Ericsson at the exit of Turn 2 and made what proved to be a winning pass for the lead.
“I think it was a tough way to end the race,” said the 2022 Indy 500 winner. “I don’t really agree with how we did that. I don’t think that was a fair way to end the race.
“There wasn’t enough laps to go to do what we did. I don’t think it’s safe to go out of the pits on cold tires for a restart when half the field is still trying to get out on track when we go green. I don’t think it’s a fair way to end the race. I don’t think it’s a right way to end the race. So I can’t agree with that.
“I don’t think it was enough laps to go when the yellow came, so I think it should have finished under yellow.”
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Ericsson said he does not plan to address the finish with the series, but conceded that it will take some time to make peace with a day where he felt he and his team did a perfect job of everything that was in their control, only to be denied by something that was out of their hands.
“I feel disappointed because I think we did everything right,” he said. “When that red came so late, I thought I was a bit too late, so I thought when the yellow came out with three laps to go, whatever, in my world we don’t restart that race.
“But it is what it is. You have to play with the cards you’re given, and I think we nailed it today. We did everything right. I did everything right. You can’t do more than that.
“Josef is a worthy champion, and I congratulate him on that. But it’s a bit tough to accept how it ended. That’s my feeling. But I’m very proud of our efforts and our performance today.”
However, Tony Kanaan — who finished 16th in his IndyCar swan song — believed race control’s decision to chase a green flag finish was the right one, and pointed to the criticism that came in the wake of his own Indy 500 win under yellows in 2013.
“We need to think about the show,” he said. “The biggest complaint we had every year was we shouldn’t finish a race under the yellow. That’s going to hurt someone. Actually, 32 guys are pissed right now, and one guy is happy. That’s the reality.
“Could have they called it earlier? Yes. Could have, should have, would have, but we ended under green, and that’s what the fans kept asking us every time.
“I won under yellow, and everybody hated it at some point. Easy for me to say, because I’m not in [Ericsson’s] shoes. I mean, look at this place. Do we really want to finish under yellow with all those people out there? For me, it was the right call.”
Santino Ferrucci, who finished third, was in step with the Brazilian veteran.
“I don’t mind what IndyCar did,” he said. “It’s just I think Marcus has a slightly different opinion, which is totally cool because he finished second. Sitting there third is tough because there is nothing you can do other than watch. That’s where the bittersweet is.”
