Josef Newgarden was quietly leading the Iowa 2 GP and had victory in his hands when rear-end trouble in his Penske threw him into the wall and ended his race
Josef Newgarden seemed to have a second consecutive victory in his hands on Sunday (24) in Iowa. But everything changed on lap 235, when a mechanical problem caused the American to lose control of the rear end of his Penske and crash into the wall at turn 4. Newgarden was completely heartbroken about the crash and the chance for victory and the IndyCar Series lead that had been squandered.
"It was shocking, definitely. I want to cry. I'm very sad for my whole team. I don't know what happened, we were fine. It's just one race, but I feel terrible for us. My team and Chevrolet did a great job. Something went wrong," lamented Josef in an interview shortly after the accident.
Newgarden got out of the car without really knowing whether the crash was his fault or a mechanical failure. When he was told that the broadcasting team believed the accident was due to a fault in the rear end of his Penske, the American said that this kind of thing is part of the sport.
"This is motor racing. Penske is the best, these things never happen to me, so maybe it was time. It can't happen this year, but we will fight back. We have a great team," Newgarden emphasized.
After talking to the press, Newgarden went to his trailer. The American felt ill and fell, injuring the back of his head. Josef had been released by Indy doctors shortly after the accident, but was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Des Moines. The driver is conscious and talking, and air transport was used to avoid traffic.
With the result, Josef dropped to third place in Indy, 34 points behind the leader, Sweden's MArcus Ericsson. If he is cleared by the doctors, Newgarden will be back on track next Sunday (31st), for the Indianapolis GP 2, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway mixed circuit.