Felix Rosenqvist met a cruel fate in Sunday’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course as a technical failure forced him to retire when running in third place.
It brought down the curtain on what had marked a highly promising start to the race, where Rosenqvist swept around the outside of Colton Herta to snatch P3 after starting from fourth on the grid.
He then slotted in right behind leading duo Pato O’Ward and eventual race winner Scott McLaughlin as the race settled in.
The potential podium voyage came to a crushing end on lap nine, however, when the Swede’s Arrow McLaren SP car suddenly ground to a halt exiting Mid-Ohio’s Turn 2 – also known as The Keyhole – with Rosenqvist parking up in a cloud of smoke.
“This one is extremely tough to take, let me be honest,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “It was going so well. I had a great start, passed Herta on the outside, and could easily keep up with the pace up front. We will have to analyze exactly what happened, of course, but basically the car just died when I applied the throttle on the exit of Turn 2.”
In a heartbreaking development for Arrow McLaren SP, the squad’s second car with Pato O’Ward later also retired.
“This is a big blow for us today and I’m massively disappointed, but there’s not much I can do,” Felix Rosenqvist admits. “The only thing I can do is get back up there, trying again. The pace is clearly improving with every race. We’ve got to take the positives, no matter how much this hurts today. It’s heartbreaking for the entire team, but we are pushing, we will be back.”
Next up on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule is a visit to Canada for the much-anticipated return of Toronto, which greets the field on July 15-17.
RESULTS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 9
Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (USA)
1: Scott McLaughlin (NZL), Penske, 80 laps
2: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, +0.551s
3: Will Power (AUS), Penske, +3.841s
4: Rinus VeeKay (NED), ECR, +11.374s
5: Scott Dixon (NZL), Ganassi, +12.319s
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DNF: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Arrow McLaren SP, +72 laps
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | After 9/17 races
1: Marcus Ericsson (SWE), Ganassi, 321 p.
2: Will Power (AUS), Penske, 301 p.
3: Josef Newgarden (USA), Penske, 287 p.
4: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, 286 p.
5: Pato O’Ward (MEX), Arrow McLaren SP, 256 p.
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11: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Arrow McLaren SP, 208 p.