MADISON, Ill. — In a dramatic turn of events during Sunday evening’s race at Gateway near St. Louis, Josef Newgarden, a multiple-time Indianapolis 500 victor, experienced a frightening crash when his vehicle ended up flipping upside down.
The incident unfolded midway through the race following a collision with fellow driver Louis Foster. Foster’s car spun uncontrollably into the wall and then ricocheted directly into the path of Newgarden’s approaching car. Unable to dodge the collision, Newgarden’s car soared into the air, grazed the SAFER barrier, landed upside down, and skidded for a significant distance along the track.
IndyCar’s dedicated safety crew acted swiftly, rushing to Newgarden’s aid and safely extricating him from his overturned vehicle. Reassuringly, Newgarden communicated to his Team Penske crew via radio that he was unharmed. With Newgarden safely out of the vehicle, the safety team then worked to right the overturned No. 2 Chevrolet while a yellow flag was waved to manage the ensuing track cleanup.
Reflecting on the wreck, Foster explained, “The car got a bit unstable… I went a bit too high and got into the marbles. It was impossible to stop the spin, and unfortunately, resulted in a pretty severe impact with Josef. I’m really relieved he’s okay.”
After being checked and released from the medical center, Newgarden opted not to provide comments on the incident. Prior to this, his teammate Will Power had also encountered trouble on the track, crashing after a tire malfunction caused him to make contact with the wall. Despite having started from pole position, Power’s mishap meant that Team Penske continued their challenging season without a victory.
While Team Penske faced struggles, Kyle Kirkwood from Andretti Global celebrated another successful outing, claiming his second consecutive win and third of the season. Kirkwood, together with Alex Palou, the reigning two-time IndyCar champion, remains the only drivers to secure wins this season, with Palou achieving five victories.