Alexander Rossi says his car—and his comfort in it—were good enough on Carb Day as he cleared the final hurdle to start Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 after surgery for injuries to his left middle finger and right ankle. Despite not being among the fastest in pract
INDIANAPOLIS — Alexander Rossi climbed back into his rhythm on Carb Day. giving his car—and his comfort in the car—a simple thumbs-up on pit lane. For a driver who crashed in practice Monday and had to undergo surgery for injuries to his left hand and right ankle. that gesture carried its own weight. Rossi cleared the final hurdle to drive in Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.
The 2016 race winner’s week had been built around recovery. After the Monday crash. Rossi needed surgery for an injured middle finger on his left hand and for an injured right ankle. When Ed Carpenter Racing officers checked in during the week, they believed he would make the start from the No. 2 spot, a career best. Friday, Rossi sounded relieved that the work didn’t end with the operation.
“I’d like to talk about our team and the doctors at IU Health and what they accomplished in order to get us back into this process. It’s pretty exceptional,” Rossi said on pit lane. “It took a huge amount of things to go right and a great group of people I’m incredibly thankful for.”
On Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s 2.5-mile oval. Rossi wasn’t anywhere near the fastest car in the final IndyCar practice session for the biggest race on the calendar. He was 31st of 33 drivers, posting a fast lap of 222.291 m.p.h. in his backup car—the same one he used when he led the race last year.
But that number wasn’t the point. The priority was simple: confirm the car worked. Team members also had to be satisfied that he could operate the pedals with a specially designed brace and protective boot. after clearing a litany of tests just to get cleared to drive. The last test went off without a hitch.
Pato O’Ward, who was swept up in the crash, also switched to a backup car and gave it good marks.
Speed did belong to Josef Newgarden when the session settled into its pace. The two-time Indy winner posted the fastest lap at 228.342 m.p.h. in traffic on a cool, overcast day. Christian Rasmussen was second at 227.474. Newgarden will start 23rd Sunday, while Rasmussen qualified 15th.
Carb Day did not come clean, though. Marcus Ericsson, the 2022 Indy winner, brought out a yellow flag after he pulled into pit lane because he thought he had a loose right rear wheel. The concern turned out to be nothing—turns out the wheel was fine.
Felix Rosenqvist’s time also had its own interruption. Crew members for the Swedish driver fixed an undisclosed broken part and got him back on the track in time to finish practice.
Katherine Legge, meanwhile, was dealing with problems off the track. She is trying to become the first female to attempt racing’s “double”—1,100 miles of racing in one day. Legge had communications trouble after dealing with a flight delay to get back to Indy on Thursday. She will start 26th in Indianapolis and will attempt to qualify for the Coca-Cola 600 on Saturday.
Even the celebration around race week had a snag. Rain washed out the annual pit-stop competition before the first round of stops could be completed.
And in another headline event, New York Dog held on to win the second Oscar Mayer Wienie 500.
The day’s story ultimately circled back to the one driver who needed everything to go right: Rossi proved he could drive again—without his injuries turning into a roadblock—and that meant Sunday’s No. 2 start from a career best spot was finally within reach.
Alexander Rossi Indianapolis 500 Carb Day IU Health Ed Carpenter Racing Josef Newgarden Christian Rasmussen Pato O'Ward Marcus Ericsson Felix Rosenqvist Katherine Legge Oscar Mayer Wienie 500