INDIANAPOLIS – Colton Herta was re-evaluated by the IndyCar Medical staff on Saturday and has been cleared to return to racing.
Although Herta never lost consciousness from his crash in Friday’s final Carb Day practice session, the ear accelerometer that each driver wears registered enough G forces that IndyCar Medical Director Dr. Geoffrey Billows wanted to re-evaluate the driver of the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda on Saturday.
The 22-year-old Herta passed the examination and will start a backup Honda in 25th position in Sunday’s 106th Indianapolis 500 for Andretti Autosport.
Herta had a major crash with 30 minutes left in Friday’s final round of practice on Carb Day for the 106th Indianapolis 500.
Herta’s No. 26 Gainbridge Honda sped down the frontstretch of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway into turn 1 before the rear end broke loose from the track. He slammed backwards into the turn 1 wall and the car flipped upside down and skidded down the south short chute. After sliding though, the short straight that connects turns 1 and 2, Herta’s car came to a stop, still upside down.
“I’m all right,” Herta radioed to his crew before the car ever came to a stop.
The AMR Safety Crew was able to turn over damaged car and the 22-year-old Herta was able to climb out of the car with little assistance from the team.
Herta’s team is switching to a backup, which will start the race in the same position as the car he crashed. That’s the inside of row 9 alongside Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin and four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves of Meyer Shank Racing.
“Yeah, a little bit of sadness for that race car,” Herta said. “It sucks. It seemed like it was OK. We were really loose that whole session. I think I was just going a little bit too fast for that corner. I wiggled and the air got underneath it.
“I’m all good. I’m fine. Hopefully we can repair some of the car. Hopefully it’s not tubbed, but it does look like it took a pretty big shot on the side. But yeah, we’ll get the car out. If we need to take the T car out, we will. We’ll work on that one tomorrow.”
That was before Herta’s father and team partner Bryan Herta said the car could not be repaired.
Colton Herta was asked if he was thankful for the aeroscreen in the crash because his car skidded upside down for almost the length of the short chute.
“I’m thankful for a lot of things,” he said. “I guess the aeroscreen is part of that. But more so the AMR safety crew and the durability of the sidepods and all the side structure of the cars because that was a big hit from the side. And yeah, for the safety crews, they were very fast to flip me back over.
“I think we were loose because it just rained, and the track was green. I think the biggest thing was this session we weren’t going to make any huge revelations in the car. We weren’t going to go from a terrible car to a winning car. We might have made small steps, but it was all about just getting the last little bits of balance right. Making sure everybody is OK for pit stops and everybody is happy with how the fuel tank was. It was our last chance, and we did get to do a lot of that stuff, so I’m thankful for that.
“Yeah, I’m not too worried for the race.”