O'Ward cambia a coche de reserva

Pato O’Ward will start preparing for the Indianapolis 500 in a backup car after a crash in Monday’s post-qualifying practice damaged his primary Arrow McLaren machine, according to RACER. The accident also involved Alexander Rossi and Romain Grosjean during the two-hour session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (racer.com) O’Ward had qualified sixth for the 110th running of the race before the incident. Sunday’s race is scheduled for 200 laps at the 2.5-mile oval. (indycar.com) ### ¿Cómo terminó O’Ward en un coche de reserva? Monday’s practice session ended early after Rossi, O’Ward and Grosjean were collected in a crash, RACER reported. The outlet said O’Ward’s damage was extensive enough that Arrow McLaren had to switch to a backup chassis for the Indy 500. (indianapolismotorspeedway.com) RACER reported on May 19 that O’Ward was “forced into a backup car” after the wreck. IndyCar’s own preview for race week also said the backup car would remain in O’Ward’s original sixth starting position under series rules. ### ¿Pierde su lugar de salida por cambiar de chasis? (racer.com) IndyCar.com said backup cars will remain in their original starting spots for this case, leaving O’Ward still slated to start sixth. The same IndyCar report said Alexander Rossi’s backup car would remain second on the grid. NBC Sports listed O’Ward in the sixth starting position in the published lineup after qualifying, behind pole-sitter Alex Palou and the rest of the first two rows. (racer.com) Palou won pole with a four-lap average of 232.248 mph, NBC Sports said. ### ¿Qué pasó con Grosjean? Romain Grosjean, who is listed 24th on the grid by IndyCar.com, was also involved in the same accident. (racer.com) RACER said Dale Coyne Racing did not need a replacement chassis for Grosjean’s car, but the transmission and rear-end components were damaged. A team official told IndyCar.com that Grosjean’s car would be ready for Friday’s practice. (indycar.com) That left Dale Coyne Racing facing repair work rather than a full car change. ### ¿Cuándo volverán estos coches a pista? Friday’s final practice, the Carb Day session, is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET, according to IndyCar.com. That session is the next on-track opportunity for teams still rebuilding after Monday’s crash. (nbcsports.com) Indianapolis Motor Speedway said race-day gates will open at 6 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 24, for the sold-out grandstand crowd. The speedway’s published event schedule lists driver introductions at 11:47 a.m. (indycar.com) ET and the green flag at 12:45 p.m. ET. ### ¿Qué cambia en la práctica para Arrow McLaren? Arrow McLaren now faces the usual backup-car challenge of transferring setup work from the original car to a replacement chassis before Sunday. (indycar.com) IndyCar did not detail the team’s setup plan, but the rule keeping O’Ward in sixth means the immediate competitive cost is centered on preparation time rather than grid position. That is an inference based on the series rule and the timing of Friday’s final practice. (indycar.com) Sunday, May 24, is the next key date. The 110th Indianapolis 500 will run 200 laps at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with O’Ward in sixth, Grosjean in 24th and Palou on pole. (indycar.com) (indianapolismotorspeedway.com)