Indy 500: Team Penske star in nasty wreck as car goes airborne

Photo: © IMAGO

Indianapolis 500

Team Penske star in nasty Indy 500 wreck as car goes airborne

Qualifying ahead of the 109th Indianapolis 500 is taking place ahead of next weekend's race

Simmey Hannifin Donaldson

Sunday 18 May 2025 20:27

Team Penske star Scott McLaughlin has become the latest IndyCar star to crash at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, heavily damaging his No. 3 Chevrolet just hours ahead of the final rounds of Indy 500 qualifying.

Thankfully, despite the nasty-looking incident, IndyCar has confirmed that the 31-year-old has been seen and released from their medical center.

The wreck occurred in practice ahead of Top 12 Qualifying and the Fast Six on Sunday evening, with McLaughlin having been eligible after ending the first day of qualifying in second position.

McLaughlin's car got loose coming through turn two at IMS, spinning around and flying into the barrier as a result, with the car eventually going airborne and slamming back into the ground.

Scott McLaughlin with a MASSIVE impact 😬

The No. 3 car hits the Turn 2 wall in #Indy500 practice. pic.twitter.com/eXBunUAhKp
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) May 18, 2025

Scott McLaughlin in scary Indy 500 crash

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After being released by IndyCar, McLaughlin spoke to the FOX Sports broadcast team, confirming that he was okay and how the wreck unfolded from his point of view.

"Yeah, I'm fine," McLaughlin explained. "I'm just really really sorry for everyone at Team Penske, my guys on the [No.] 3 car, [No.] 2, [No.] 12, everyone who builds these fantastic cars.

McLaughlin continued: "Incredibly sad. That's basically what I felt like,"

"You just try and brace yourself, and I was just hoping I didn't go in the catch fence.

"Very grateful to IndyCar, the safety, my team, the safer barriers, and everything like that."

McLaughlin's crash is the latest big wreck to take place just this weekend, with the likes of Colton Herta, Kyle Larson, Marcus Armstrong, and Kyffin Simpson all involved in other damaging incidents.

Team Penske Indy 500 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Scott McLaughlin