Andretti, Alexander Rossi lose points, money for weight infraction on winning car at Indy

Associated PressAug 3, 2022, 6:00 PM EDT
Alexander Rossi Andretti points
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IndyCar hit Andretti Autosport and Alexander Rossi with a loss of 20 points and a $25,000 fine Wednesday because the team used a water bottle to make weight in the winning car in the July 30 race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

Rossi ended a 49-race losing streak with the victory. His No. 27 Dallara-Honda failed postrace inspection when it was discovered to be underweight. IndyCar said the water bottle was used instead of ballast, and the car failed to meet the minimum weight requirement.

“From a sporting perspective, the car met minimum requirements,” IndyCar President Jay Frye said. “From a technical perspective, the way they achieved the weight is not allowed. To meet minimum weight, the drink bottle and its contents were used as car ballast, which is not permitted and why the team is being fined and penalized.”

Rossi also was docked 20 points and dropped a spot to ninth in the championship standings. The Nevada City, California, native has four races remaining in a seven-season run with Andretti before leaving for Arrow McLaren SP next season.

“We regret the mistake and appreciate IndyCar’s understanding that the No. 27 was compliant during the race,” the team said in a statement, adding it looked forward to moving on to this weekend’s racing in Nashville.

His win Saturday ended a three-year losing streak that dated to Road America in Wisconsin in 2019 and spanned 1,133 days. The victory also helped him leave his No. 27 team on a positive note; almost 70% of Rossi’s team has been with him for his seven seasons driving for Andretti.

Rossi won the 100th running of the Indy 500 as a rookie in 2016. He’d returned to the United States that season after his time chasing a seat in Formula One came to an end. Rossi’s five races in the 2015 season make him the last American driver to compete in an F1 weekend.

IndyCar disappointed by delay of video game but aiming to launch at start of 2024

By Mar 27, 2023, 3:00 PM EDT
IndyCar video game 2024
IndyCar
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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”