Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel not cleared to race in the IndyCar Farm to Finish 275

0 3 2 minutes read

arrow-mclaren’s-nolan-siegel-not-cleared-to-race-in-the-indycar-farm-to-finish-275 — Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel not cleared to race in the IndyCar Farm to Finish 275

Arrow McLaren driver Nolan Siegel will miss the second leg of the NTT IndyCar Series’ Iowa Speedway doubleheader after his crash during Saturday’s Synk 275.

The Californian was checked by the IndyCar Medical Team and has not been cleared to compete in the Farm to Finish 275. Arrow McLaren has withdrawn the No. 6 Chevrolet from the race, leaving the field at 26 entries.

“There’s no place I’d rather be than out there driving today, especially from P5; one of my best starting positions of the season” Siegel said in a team statement. “I know I’m in good hands with the INDYCAR Medical Team and thank them for the great care they provide us drivers.

“Most of all, I feel for the 6 car crew. They gave me a rocket this weekend and put in a ton of work last night with hopes we’d be racing today. They deserve to be out there fighting for podium, and we’ll be back soon to do just that.”

Siegel suffered a solo spin and backed into the wall at the exit of turn 4 during the final stages of Saturday’s race, ending his day in 24th.

“(The car) was a little weird from the time I left pit lane,” Siegel told FOX Sports afterward. “I hadn’t had a lot of oversteer up until then. And then, I don’t know, I just lost it in the middle of (turns) 3 and 4. I was pushing hard. That’s it. Not much more to it.”

The Californian initially said he was fine and excited to race on Sunday. But wasn’t cleared to compete on the morning of the race.

“I’ve been there,” Arrow McLaren team principal Tony Kanaan said. “I know how Nolan feels not racing today. It’s the worst feeling in the world. The most important thing, though, is that he’s fit to race, and unfortunately that’s not the case today. It was a tough decision to park the car, but we’ve been through this before.”

Kanaan stated that Arrow McLaren elected “not to rush into switching drivers” after finding out Siegel was unavailable so close to the green flag. The team will make a contingency plan in case Siegel can’t compete in next weekend’s race in Toronto.

Siegel is in the midst of his second season in IndyCar and first full year with Arrow McLaren. The 20-year-old has endured struggles, but entered Iowa after a season-best finish of fourth at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and had qualified eighth and fifth for this weekend’s doubleheader. He currently sits 21st in the championship standings.