Team Penske’s explanation is not making sense for some drivers. Everyone in the IndyCar paddock is discussing Team Penske’s misuse of the Push to Pass system in St. Petersburg and subsequent disqualification.
At Barber Motorsports Park on Friday, Graham Rahal shared his thoughts on the matter and expressed his frustration with the explanations provided by Josef Newgarden and his team, rather than the actual infraction itself.
Rahal stated, “Let me put it this way, you don’t want to criticize too much,” almost reluctantly. “I was hoping to remain anonymous on this topic. I didn’t appreciate some of the statements that were made. I’ll say that. Like, I didn’t appreciate some of the justifications because I don’t believe they are valid justifications.”
“I was somewhat okay with the penalty, yeah, sure, whatever. But then as more stories came out, I continued reading the statements. I just thought to myself, ‘Now you’re just digging yourself into a hole with complete nonsense.'”
“I simply don’t appreciate that. In the spirit of fair play, if you make a mistake, own up to it, move on with life. I’ll leave it at that.”
Team Penske claimed that the violation occurred because a version of the car’s software used for testing was accidentally left in the car for the first few races of the season.
This software bypassed a signal sent by IndyCar to all cars, which allowed their drivers to utilize the boost system on the first lap of restarts when no one else could.
Newgarden further clarified that he was aware of the system being allowed on restarts and believed it was a new rule implemented by the series.
Rahal continued to express his thoughts on the reasons provided, stating, “All I can say, you can interpret it as you wish, but what I said stands: I don’t appreciate the weak justifications and the attempts to explain it.”
“At the end of the day, it’s quite simple. You had access to something that no one else did, and that’s a fact. That’s all there is to it.”
“I find it really, really disappointing to read some of the explanations. However, aside from that, we will continue racing this weekend.”
“Look, do I think it changes the final outcome? No, they’re extremely talented. They’ve proven today that they will be fast, they will be at the front, but…”
Newgarden swiftly moved past the controversy and set the fastest lap in the first practice session on Friday afternoon.
A second practice session and a qualifying session for the Children’s of Alabama Grand Prix will occur later in the day on Saturday.