Former Formula One driver Alexander Rossi says that ruling out the Indianapolis 500 because of safety concerns is an "excuse."
Former Formula One driver Alexander Rossi says ruling out the Indianapolis 500 because of safety concerns is an "excuse."
After former Sauber driver Marcus Ericsson won the legendary American race, world champion Max Verstappen said he has no desire to follow in his footsteps.
Other F1 drivers, including Lando Norris, Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz, agreed with Verstappen.
"I was that guy too," Rossi, who was active in F1 during the era of the small Caterham and Marussia teams, said on the program of the .
"I think that when you are on a trajectory to F1 and your whole world revolves around F1, it is a sad state in the sense that other categories really don't exist for you."
"I was the same way - I knew what the Indy 500 was, but I never really paid attention to it. So when you come and have the opportunity to participate, it's an incredibly special event."
Rossi believes that while Verstappen's argument about safety has some basis, it is still an "excuse."
"In a sense, maybe it's more dangerous, but we've had four crashes and no car has broken in half. You can't say that about Monaco, right? I think the safety argument is an excuse."