– Even on his sixth attempt, Mick Schumacher (RLL-Honda; 24th) did not make it into Q2 of a qualifying session at an IndyCar race on a street or road course. At the race in Detroit, he was again stuck in Q1.
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His time of 1:03.849 minutes would not have been enough to advance to Q2 anyway. However, this was also disqualified because he caused a red flag. Two minutes before the end, he crashed his Dallara-Honda from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing into the wall exiting the chicane at turn 6/7.
The footage only showed the outcome of the accident, as he went into the “Grey” area exiting turn 7, meaning the dirty part of the track. According to initial information, Schumacher was like a pinball: already in the right-hand turn, turn 6, he apparently touched the inside wall, which caused him to be thrown into the wall at turn 7, the left-hand turn, and from there into the wall at the corner exit.
Street courses are particularly tough in the IndyCar series because a lot of dust and dirt accumulates off the racing line. The grip differences are greater than on permanent race tracks. Schumacher’s counted lap is now a 1:07.449, which places him at the back of the field.
Schumacher was lucky in misfortune, as accidents like this are not without risk in the IndyCar series. Also dangerous in such cases is the so-called “kickback” into the steering wheel upon impact.
Wall impacts can cause hand injuries in IndyCars because, due to the lack of power steering, the force of the impact is transmitted directly to the steering wheel, which is then violently jerked. Schumacher had already slightly injured his hand in the crash at the season opener in St. Petersburg.
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Schumacher’s weekend in Detroit has been extremely tough so far, as his pace has also not been good enough for the top 20. However, races on street courses are often so chaotic that good results are possible even with a lack of speed if the strategy is right.
Schumacher was also eliminated in Q1 during qualifying in St. Petersburg, Arlington, Birmingham, and at the Indianapolis Grand Prix. He performed better on the ovals, especially with a fourth-place starting position in Phoenix.
Malukas crashes into the wall at the same spot
Just a few minutes after Schumacher’s impact, David Malukas (Penske-Chevrolet; 25th) was the next driver to crash at the same spot. Malukas, who was narrowly beaten by Felix Rosenqvist (MSR-Honda) at the Indy 500, also had a nasty crash.
It was clear here that he entered the chicane too fast, got a slight oversteer, and therefore was positioned at an unfavorable angle for the left-hand turn. He then touched the inside wall and quickly took his hands off the steering wheel before the impact on the opposite side occurred.
Reload the page! A detailed report with more information about qualifying will follow shortly here.
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