IndyCar driver Ed Carpenter crashed out of the Indianapolis 500 and refused to leave the track until he confronted the rival he held responsible for his accident. The team owner and driver entered the 100th running of the iconic race, but his day ended after just 27 of 200 laps when he became the third driver eliminated.
Crash and Confrontation
The race had already claimed 2014 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay and Britain's Katherine Legge, the latter hitting the wall after swerving to avoid Hunter-Reay, who spun out independently. At the restart, Carpenter found himself trapped between several cars and slammed into the wall. Replays showed two-time Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato, on Carpenter's outside, drifting into his line, causing the spin. Carpenter emerged uninjured but visibly furious.
Instead of following a safety marshal off the track, Carpenter stood on the Brickyard circuit, waiting for the field to pass. When Sato approached, Carpenter gestured at him and was unmistakably seen mouthing "f*** you" at the Japanese driver.
Carpenter's Reaction
After being cleared by medical staff, Carpenter told journalists: "I was in the middle of a gaggle of cars, following Marcus Armstrong into turn one on the outside, and Takuma tried to make it three-wide into turn one on the restart, which was unwise. Not only did he do that, he tried to squeeze me down like I was not going to be there, so that's really disappointing, so early in the race. For a veteran like that, a two-time champion, I would expect way more out of him. Needless to say, I'm pretty disappointed that happened."
Online Reaction
The confrontation sparked widespread reaction online. One fan commented: "Ed Carpenter is a psycho. Gets in a wreck and then tries to square up a moving IndyCar!" Another observed: "I don't think we need a professional lip-reader for what Ed Carpenter said to Sato." A third quipped: "Ed Carpenter looks like a neighbourhood dad yelling at cars for going 27mph down the street when the speed limit sign clearly says 25."
