Watch: Kiwi 'lucky' after scary near miss in IndyCar qualifying
Sunday, 5 March 2023
Scott McLaughlin is counting his lucky stars after coming within millimetres of having a serious crash in qualifying for the opening race of the NTT IndyCar Series in St Petersburg.
McLaughlin was the sole New Zealander to progress to the final ‘Fast 6’ stage of this morning’s qualifying, and was on a hot lap when drama struck.
The 29-year-old was navigating the final sequence of corners, when he clipped the outside wall at turn 10, breaking a right-rear toe link.
This prompted his Penske Chevrolet to slide out of control two corners later – narrowly avoiding slamming the outside concrete wall as it spun through the grass before coming to a rest at the final corner.
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The incident was déjà vu for McLaughlin, with the former Supercars star having had a similar moment in opening practice, although without the pirouette through the dirt.
The spin means McLaughlin will start tomorrow’s season opener from sixth on the grid. Pole position went to former Formula 1 ace Romain Grosjean, who will start alongside Colton Herta, with Patricio O’Ward and Marcus Ericsson on the second row.
Fellow Kiwi Scott Dixon qualified three positions behind McLaughlin in ninth. Having looked threatening in group two of qualifying, the six-time champion couldn’t progress to the Fast 6.
On debut in the series, the third of the New Zealanders of the grid – Marcus Armstrong – enjoyed a strong showing as fastest rookie of the day.
The fresh Ganassi Racing recruit spent most of his opening qualifying hit-out in the top six of group one, sitting in the box seat to progress to the second wave of qualifying. But a few late quick laps dropped him down to seventh in the session, one spot shy of progression.
He therefore will make his IndyCar debut tomorrow from 13th place alongside former champion Josef Newgarden.
The Firestone Grand Prix of St Petersburg kicks off at 6.00pm NZDT tomorrow morning.