Image via NTT IndyCar Series/Facebook
This year’s Indy 500 was a bit of a mess, but some fans seemed to love all the drama and carnage while others were horrified. Out of 33 cars entered for the famous race, by the halfway mark there were only 25 still on the track.
Charles Leclerc is rumored to be contemplating copying teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Setting the tone was Scott McLaughlin’s crash before the green flag even waved. Marco Andretti wrecked out on the first lap. During a pit stop, Alexander Rossi’s car caught fire, the frustrated driver throwing his gloves after getting away from the blaze.
Another look at the pit road fire for an extremely frustrated Alexander Rossi.#Indy500 on FOX pic.twitter.com/bLSZ2YAJsC
— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) May 25, 2025
Rinus VeeKay crashed in pitrow telling Fox Sports he hit the brakes, but the car didn’t respond, thanks to an unknown brake system fault.
I just wanted a nice calm start to my day down in turn 1 yesterday
— Nick Yeoman (@NYeoman) May 26, 2025
I guess add two more to my “Boy, I’ve called a lot of bizarre crashes over the years” reel
Here’s how Scott McLaughlin and Marco Andretti’s accidents sounded. pic.twitter.com/9rT4Vu7jUP
After the caution thanks to VeeKay’s wreck, Kyle Larson spun out on the restart while doing an unnecessary downshift. That led to Kyffin Simpson and Sting Ray Robb also crashing, ending the race for all three drivers.
Replay of Kyle Larson's crash #INDY500 pic.twitter.com/S5KBFgSEJr
— INDYCAR on FOX (@IndyCarOnFOX) May 25, 2025
Rookie driver Robert Schwartzman suffered an unfortunate mishap coming into the pits. Thanks to what he described as something that “felt really strange” he locked both front tires, coming into his pit too fast.
The car hit four pit crew members and the wall. They struggled to lift the car and get it positioned away from the wall. Then a crew member hobbled to have his injured ankle inspected by the safety crew.
Because of the pit accident, Schwartzman retired from the race.
After the race, IndyCar officials found unapproved modifications on cars driven by Marcus Ericsson and Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global, plus Callum Ilott of Prema Racing. In an official statement IndyCar said, “During post-race inspection of car Nos. 27 and 28, IndyCar discovered modifications to the Dallara-supplied Energy Management System (EMS) covers and cover-to-A-arm mounting points with unapproved spacers and parts.”
As a result, all three cars were put in the rear of the field. Each one was given a $100,000 fine, plus the team and competition managers for each was slapped with a one-race suspension.
Image via NTT IndyCar Series/Facebook
