Engine change! Mick Schumacher has to move back in Washington

– From starting position 20 to a place at the back of the field: Mick Schumacher (RLL-Honda) receives a six-place penalty due to an early engine change (“unapproved engine change”). He will start second to last because Santino Ferrucci (Foyt-Chevrolet) also had his engine changed. (Starting grid Freedom 250)

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An IndyCar engine must last a distance of 2,500 miles (about 4,000 kilometers) before it can be changed without penalty. Additionally, each driver has a quota of four engines for a season, which must cover 10,000 miles (about 16,000 kilometers).

The reason for the change goes back quite a bit: Due to a technical defect in the first free practice in Long Beach in April, Schumacher was out of the regular engine change cycle for the entire season. Sooner or later, a penalty had to come.

Apparently, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing sees the Freedom 250 as the right moment. Not only should the remaining two race weekends (with three races) in Milwaukee and at Laguna Seca Raceway be completed with one engine, but the penalty is also relatively minor since Schumacher only qualified in 20th place.

Moreover, the Freedom 250 (all info about the race including free TV!) with its longer race distance offers enough opportunity to make up lost ground. In the morning warm-up, Schumacher showed an improvement with the eleventh-best time and was, as in the free practices, the best RLL driver.

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The #47 camp probably won’t miss the old engine too much. In Portland, Schumacher had mysterious problems with the unit that cost two to three tenths of a second per lap. In Markham, engine power was not decisive, but in Washington, torque does matter.

Schumacher’s Dallara-Honda had its hybrid unit replaced before qualifying. He now has completely fresh equipment available for the race on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the United States of America. Whether this will be enough to compensate for the team’s previous speed problems this weekend remains to be seen.

Schumacher is not the only driver to have received an engine penalty. As mentioned at the beginning, Santino Ferrucci received the same penalty for an engine change before the weekend. He qualified 22nd and must also move back.

Marcus Ericsson (Andretti-Honda) also had his engine changed after a disappointing qualifying. The Swede will start from P21. Nolan Siegel (McLaren-Chevrolet) meanwhile drops from P12 to P18. The race starts at 19:13 CEST.

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