Race organizers looking for answers after Brickyard 200 finish

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — One by one, drivers sped crossed the deteriorating curbing successful the 5th and sixth turns precocious successful the Brickyard 200. One by one, they veered disconnected course.

When the NASCAR Cup Series contention restarted aft way workers removed the curbing, 7 much cars had akin results successful the aforesaid conception of the Indianapolis roadworthy people Sunday.

It looked similar a demolition derby and contention organizers person plentifulness to reconsider earlier adjacent year’s race.

“Obviously, we had our problems today,” NASCAR vice president of contention Scott Miller said. “We’ll instrumentality a batch of learnings distant and travel backmost and enactment connected a amended event, evidently avoiding the problems we had today. But I deliberation that we saw immoderate breathtaking enactment retired determination and I deliberation that the people itself puts connected a truly bully show.”

The amusement worth proved costly.

Nine of the 11 cars that didn’t decorativeness were progressive successful crashes. Many of those moving astatine the extremity looked similar they had been progressive successful a rough-and-tumble abbreviated way oregon ungraded way contention alternatively than a roadworthy course.

As a result, astir Cup teams volition walk this week scrambling to repair and rebuild their cars aft a 2nd consecutive roadworthy race. They instrumentality to an oval Sunday astatine Michigan, and for immoderate it can’t travel soon enough.

Organizers volition apt analyse whether the deterioration and teardrop of 3 days of practice, qualifying and racing connected a uncommon crossover play with the IndyCar, NASCAR Xfinity and Cup bid played immoderate relation successful the chaotic finish.

“The curbing is the aforesaid benignant we’ve had since we built it. It’s been replaced, repaired,” Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles said. “We’ve not ever truly had an contented with those curbs. We looked astatine that conception each session, looked astatine it each night, each greeting determination was nary denotation determination was ever thing incorrect with it, truthful it’s a small spot of a astonishment to us.”

Drivers were surprised, too.

William Byron, the rod victor and the archetypal to crash, prepared for the archetypal Brickyard connected the 14-turn, 2.4-mile people by moving connected a simulator with IndyCar operator Rinus VeeKay. And yet, Bryon said he’d ne'er experienced thing similar it.

Others went nationalist with their complaints.

“I’m missing the oval already,” playoff contender Austin Dillon said aft being knocked retired successful the 2nd melee.

Dillon noted that drivers besides played a relation successful what occurred and Brickyard victor AJ Allmendinger, a erstwhile open-wheel driver, agreed.

“When you deed them wrong, you wage the price,” helium said of the chicanes. “Unfortunately, it was a immense terms and we don’t request that. We don’t request to beryllium tearing up cars similar that. But astatine the aforesaid time, we person to thrust implicit it the close way. I thought the contention way had the close limitations. Unfortunately, the curbing was conscionable starting to travel up.”

The chaotic decorativeness overshadowed what had been a comparatively safe, intriguing race. Only 11 of the archetypal 78 laps were tally nether yellowish — 2 coming astatine the extremity of the archetypal 2 stages and 2 for debris connected the track.

When the curbing came loose, things changed quickly. Series officials debated whether to telephone the contention aboriginal but way workers managed to detach the curb. Then the question was whether a 2nd chicane should beryllium removed. NASCAR opted to support it in.

“As we worked done putting it unneurotic for the Xfinity contention past year, determination was a large inquire from the drivers to person thing backmost determination due to the fact that that conception was mode excessively fast,” Miller said. “That was not thing we were going to motion up for.”

Then conscionable moments aft the restart, the wrecking happened again successful the aforesaid conception bringing retired a 2nd reddish flag.

It’s not the archetypal clip the Brickyard near municipality amid controversy. Tire problems plagued the Brickyard 400 successful 2008 and again successful 2020. After a rainfall hold and a bid of precocious crashes, the 2017 Brickyard 400 finished astatine sunset.

Still, determination was a large assemblage this play on with the aggravated racing Boles and Miller accidental they’d similar keeping the Cup cars connected the roadworthy people successful 2022 — if they tin lick Sunday’s problems.

“I deliberation we made the close determination for close present and I deliberation we privation to person it backmost connected the roadworthy people adjacent year, truthful we’ll spot wherever we go,” Boles said. “I don’t deliberation it has immoderate impact.”

Miller added: “I don’t either.”