Andretti Auto Sport Alexander Rossi penalized for illegal Indy winning car

IndyCar on Wednesday fined Andretti Autosport $25,000 because the team used a water bottle to add weight to the car Alexander Rossi drove to end his 49-game losing streak.

Rossi’s car failed inspection after Saturday’s win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. IndyCar said the water bottle was used instead of ballast to ensure the car met the minimum weight requirement.

“From a sporting standpoint, the car met the minimum requirements,” IndyCar President Jay Frye said. “From a technical point of view, the way they reached the weight is not allowed. To respect the minimum weight, the drink bottle and its contents were used as ballast for the car, which is not not allowed and therefore the team is fined and sanctioned.

Rossi also amassed 20 points in the standings, but he was eighth in the standings before the penalty and has long been out of the IndyCar title chase. Rossi left Andretti at the end of the season to drive for Arrow McLaren SP.

“We regret the error and appreciate IndyCar’s understanding that the #27 was compliant during the race,” the team said in a statement, adding that it looked forward to moving on to this weekend’s race. in Nashville.

His victory on Saturday ended a three-game losing streak that stretched back to Road America in Wisconsin in 2019 and lasted 1,133 days. The victory also helped Rossi leave his No. 27 team on a high note; nearly 70% of Rossi’s team has been with him during his seven seasons at the wheel of Andretti.

Rossi, of California, won the 100th Indianapolis 500 race as a rookie in 2016. He had returned to the United States that season after his Formula 1 run ended. The five races de Rossi during the 2015 season make him the last American driver to have competed in an F1 weekend.

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