Felix Rosenqvist, Kyle Kirkwood crash out of Indy 500, send tire over stands
INDIANAPOLIS -- A terrifying incident brought the 107th Indianapolis 500 to a sudden halt on Lap 186. Felix Rosenqvist, who was running in the top 5 late in the race, lost the air off his front nose after being passed by Josef Newgarden in Turn 1 and slid up into the wall. Once the car made contact with the outside wall, it slid back down the track and was clipped by Kyle Kirkwood.
Kirkwood, a winner earlier this season at Long Beach, tried to avoid the spinning car of Rosenqvist, but Kirkwood’s No. 27 contacted Rosenqvist’s No. 6 and spun Kirkwood into the turn 2 wall. As the Andretti Autosport driver spun and crashed into the turn 2 wall, the car went airborne, flipping over and sliding down the backstretch.
“I think something broke in the right rear,” said Rosenqvist to NBC Sports after being released from the medical center.
Indy 500: Loose tire flies over fencing, fans after late race crash
As Kirkwood slid on his roof down the backstretch, a stray tire from Kirkwood’s car flew over the catch-fencing and landed behind the grandstands.
Thankfully, the tire missed the grandstands and reportedly only hit a parked car.
Safety crews were quick to attend to the overturned car of Kirkwood while Rosenqvist told his team over the radio that he was, “Ok, but pissed.”
The crash brought out a red flag to clean up the mess and make sure no one was injured from the flying tire.
Rosenqvist and Kirkwood were able to exit their race cars and, thankfully, appeared unhurt. However, Rosenqvist’s bid to be the second Swedish driver in a row to win the Indy 500 came to a disappointing end just short of the checkered flag.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indy 500: Rosenqvist, Kirkwood crash out of Indy 500, send tire over fans
