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Indy 500 Champions Josef Newgarden and Will Power were hit by a major penalty within a week of the green flag falling for the race.
Team Pensuke The driver will be forced to start at the rear of the field over the modified attenuator, the IndyCar series announced Monday. Team strategists for both drivers were stopped for the race.
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Australia’s Willpower will run through the first turn during practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP photo/Michael Conroy)
“The integrity of the Indianapolis 500 is of paramount importance, and this violation of the INDYCAR rule for modifications to this part is clear,” President J. Douglas Boles of IndyCar said in a statement. “The penalty isn’t just starting a place where the car might have qualified anyway if given the opportunity. The car belongs to the field as two of the fastest 33. But starting with the field tail is a proper penalty in this example.”
Indycar said NewGarden and Power would forfeit eligibility points and were fined $100,000.
“The positive momentum around the NTT IndyCar series and the Indianapolis 500 has been in a sudden crescendo over the past few months. We want to make it clear that our intention is to maintain that momentum and discourage IndyCar from being in a position to evoke the integrity of the host and level of the competitive field,” added Boles.
Willpower, left, Josef New Garden moved to the rear of the pack. (AP)
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“If we look at the rest of the week and races this weekend, we’ll do everything we can to make it clear that this is not only the best race on the planet, but the best victory on completely fair conditions.”
Indycar said illegal filling was found in the attenuator seams. Fox Sports.
Team Pensuke’s president Tim Sindrick said the changes were made on Sunday to make the vehicle refined and not give any benefits.
“In our eyes, that’s not a performance advantage, but at the end of the day, if you don’t like the seams being filled, you don’t like the seams being filled,” Cindric said via Fox Sports. “You have to do what the inspection process is and follow it.”
New Garden won the Indy 500 in 2023 and 2024. In 2018, Power won the race.
Each driver needs to pull off a stunning race to reach the front and win the race.
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