By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor
INDIANAPOLIS – A month of incident-free practice and qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 came to a thunderous halt Monday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
A three-car crash involving Alexander Rossi, Pato O’Ward and Romain Grosjean interrupted practice just 28 minutes after it started. Less than 30 minutes after the track reopened, rain, lightning and thunder besieged the speedway to end the session for the day.
Rossi was running in a large pack of cars when his Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet lost grip at the apex of Turn 2, made a three-quarter spin and pounded the outside SAFER Barrier. Careening backward off the wall, the car lifted onto its side momentarily before settling upright.
O’Ward spun his Arrow McLaren Chevy trying to avoid the crash but careened into Rossi’s car before sliding backward into the inside wall at the top of the back straight. Grosjean spun trying to avoid the stricken cars and hit the outside wall with the left side of his Dale Coyne Racing Honda.
Rossi exited the car and limped to the rescue vehicle. Late Monday afternoon the speedway said he was awake, alert and in good spirits, but he later was transported to an area hospital for evaluation. The team was preparing a backup car.
O’Ward and Grosjean were evaluated and released from the infield medical center.
Rossi, who qualified second on Sunday, had run 23 laps before the accident, his best speed being 221.578 mph on his eighth lap.
The entries involved in the crash will retain their starting positions even if they use backup cars, although Rossi’s car would start at the back if a relief driver is needed.
https://twitter.com/IndyCar/status/2056431309002543337
The 33 entries had driven 6,952 laps without incident in five practice sessions going into Monday. Pack running has been common during much of the practices as teams dialed in cars to run in traffic conditions they’ll face in the race.
“That’s the thing running in those big packs. One thing goes wrong and there’s not a place to go,” said Ryan Hunter-Reay, running a one-off entry with Arrow McLaren. Hunter-Reay, who qualified 22nd fastest, recorded the fourth-best speed Monday at 224.415 mph. “It’s unfortunate. It’s late in the big picture to start putting race cars back together. Comes with the territory running in a big pack like that.”
Until Monday, the only dicey moment this month happened when Takuma Sato brushed the outside wall with the right rear tire on his Rahal Letterman Racing Honda in the Sunday morning practice.
Sato, who will start on the outside of the fourth row, was second fastest Monday at 225.723.
Josef Newgarden, scheduled to start in the eight row after struggling Sunday, led Monday’s practice at 226.198. Rookie Dennis Hauger, who’ll start in the middle of the 10th row, was third fastest Monday at 224.554.
“In qualifying I didn’t really feel comfortable,” Hauger said. “On a 1-to-10 (scale), today was probably an 8. We still have stuff to work on but it’s the best I’ve felt so far.”
The track will be quiet until Friday’s two-hour Carb Day practice.
UPDATE: Ed Carpenter Racing released a statement on Monday night, noting that Rossi successfully underwent an outpatient procedure to repair minor injuries to a finger on his left hand and on his right ankle. The team added that he will remain under the care of INDYCAR Medical Director Dr. Julia Vaizer and the INDYCAR medical team with the intention of being back in the car for Carb Day on Friday and in Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.
[UPDATE] ECR driver Alexander Rossi underwent successful outpatient procedures this evening to repair minor injuries to a finger on his left hand and his right ankle. He sustained the injuries earlier today during an on-track incident while practicing for the Indianapolis 500.… pic.twitter.com/icuOJXfKvd
— ECR INDY (@ECRIndy) May 19, 2026
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