Robert Shwartzman crashes into his crew on pit road, one of the mechanics taken on a stretcher amid a suspected foot injury
Former Ferrari driver Robert Shwartzman and PREMA Racing's jubilation turned into despair in the Indy 500 after a series of unfortunate incidents. The Israeli driver eventually retired from the race after crashing into his pit crew members on the pit lane.
Robert Shwartzman became the first rookie driver in 42 years to win the Indy 500 pole position. He had a decent start, but quickly started tumbling down the pecking order. Things got worse during his first pit stop as he lost multiple places on pit road.
The former Formula 3 champion then took out multiple members of his pit crew, who injured one of the mechanics seriously. He was spotted on a stretcher with a suspected foot injury, as reported by Stevan Taranto via his X.
PREMA and Robert Shwartzman eventually retired their car, which ended a rather dismal outing for both.
What Robert Shwartzman said after his pit-lane crash at the Indy 500
It was not meant to be for rookie Robert Shwartzman, who had to retire from the race after his pit stop incident. The Israel-born driver's first Indy 500 experience was a bittersweet journey.
After his crash, Robert Shwartzman told Jamie Little (via INDYCAR on Fox's X):
"I think I had a pretty decent start today. We were at the top, then we had the first pit stop where we had some issues, so I lost a lot of time, and I was at the back. And then I tried to battle my way to the front. We were P13 coming back."
He added,
"When it was yellow, I came in and honestly, felt really strange in my brakes. I was already going slow coming into the pit lane. I locked both front tires, which usually is not the case, and I was not sure if it was the brakes or because the tires were cold."
Scott McLaughlin, Kyle Larson, and Marco Andretti were among the other big-name drivers who crashed out of the Indy 500. McLaughlin was visibly distraught after his Indy 500 win chances were dashed early in the race.
Kyle Larson immediately made his way to Charlotte Motor Speedway after his crash in a helicopter. The Hendrick Motorsports driver attempted to complete the 'Double' for the second time in as many years.
However, his hopes of completing 1100 laps and etching his name into history books took a huge hit after his mistake forced a crash. Whether Larson returns for a third attempt next year is still unclear.