Colton Herta suffered a major crash during Saturday’s qualifying session for the Indianapolis 500, just hours after Marcus Armstrong was involved in a frightening wreck of his own in nearly the same area at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Both crashes occurred in Turn 1, where unpredictable winds—gusting up to 30 mph—shift suddenly due to grandstands that shield the front stretch but leave Turn 1 exposed. Herta’s car hit the outer wall before flipping onto its side and sliding into the short chute. Safety crews quickly responded, working together to right the car.
Though Herta climbed out of the car, he needed assistance walking to a transport vehicle en route to the infield care center. He was examined and released soon after. IndyCar confirmed he was cleared to drive if his backup car could be prepped in time.
Andretti Autosport scrambled to prepare the backup car, but with the crash taking place an hour into a nearly seven-hour qualifying session, time was tight. If the team couldn’t get Herta back on track Saturday, he’d be relegated to the last row shootout in Sunday’s last-chance qualifying.
“Luckily, crashes these days look worse than they feel — though that one definitely didn’t feel good,” Herta said. “We were happy with the car earlier, but it went loose right away. I couldn’t even finish the first lap.”
Earlier in the day, Armstrong also lost control in Turn 1. Though he climbed from the wreck himself, he was quickly placed on a stretcher and taken to the medical center. He gave a thumbs-up to the crowd and was later released, about 90 minutes after the crash.
“He is awake, alert, and doing well,” said Dr. Julia Vaizer, medical director for IndyCar and the speedway.
Armstrong’s team, Meyer Shank Racing, started working on a backup car, with help from Chip Ganassi Racing — a fellow Honda-powered outfit. However, it remained uncertain who would drive it. Armstrong’s No. 66 car was withdrawn from its guaranteed attempt, leaving few options.
One possible substitute is 2013 Indy 500 winner Tony Kanaan, who completed the necessary refresher laps. However, Kanaan is now a team principal with Arrow McLaren and only ran the laps in case Kyle Larson needed a relief driver for a schedule conflict with NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600.
This situation is further complicated by the manufacturer divide: Arrow McLaren runs Chevrolet engines, while Armstrong’s car is Honda-powered.
Other backup drivers might still complete the refresher program Sunday, which would make them eligible to drive Armstrong’s entry. But like Herta, the best they could hope for is a spot in the last three rows of the 33-car starting grid.
Armstrong’s teammate, Felix Rosenqvist, reflected on the incident: “It looked a bit weird, to be honest. I was trying to follow along on the screen from inside the car. Hopefully they can bounce back quickly.”
