Reigning Indy Nxt champion Linus Lundqvist has been called up by IndyCar team Meyer Shank Racing for a second successive week to stand in for the injured Simon Pagenaud.
Lundqvist will race the number 60 car on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course this weekend. It follows an impressive debut for the 24-year-old last weekend on the streets of Nashville where he qualified 11th, rose to third mid-race and later set the fastest lap. He was running in 13th place when he crashed out with 11 laps to go.“First I want to say a massive thank you to Mike [Shank] and Jim [Meyer] for their trust to put me back in the car again,” said Lundqvist.
“The Nashville weekend was great in so many ways. Obviously, a lot of impressions and a lot of new stuff for me going on that weekend and I was pretty disappointed with the way that it ended. It was my mistake and I enjoyed it up until that point.
“I think it also left me and the team wanting more, which I am grateful for another opportunity at Indy. I know it is going to be tough again, but now I have a whole race weekend under my belt. Hopefully we can string some good results together and find some good speed, but I feel like it is going to be a super weekend.”
Since his crash in practice at Mid-Ohio over a month ago, Pagenaud has been nursing concussion-like symptoms and has not been medically cleared by IndyCar’s medical team to return to the cockpit. The IMS race will be the sixth in a row he has missed, and the 2016 champion now sits a lowly 27th in the championship standings.
However his team mate Helio Castroneves, who has contested every race so far, is not doing much better as he is 20th in the standings with a best finish of tenth.
During his absence Pagenaud’s place was previously taken by Conor Daly in Mid-Ohio and the Iowa double-header, and by Tom Blomqvist in Toronto.
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Don
8th August 2023, 15:46
He did a great job and deserves the second chance.
Radoye
8th August 2023, 19:07
Indeed. However, the extended absence of Pagenaud is very worrisome.
UNeedAFinn2Win (@uneedafinn2win)
8th August 2023, 20:16
It certainly is beginning to look like they found some underlying issue that the spin cycle he went on triggered, and at his age and opportunities, continued risk is just not worth the reward.
No shame in calling it career, and joining many others. I believe Franchitti is doing just fine out of the car
Euro Brun (@eurobrun)
9th August 2023, 14:56
Great news. Glad to see Lundqvist get another chance. He really impressed all weekend.
Euro Brun (@eurobrun)
9th August 2023, 14:59
Funnily enough, it’s immediately Franchitti that comes to mind. Whilst not necessarily a career ending crash like we’ve seen through history, enough for the doctors to say its too dangerous to risk another shunt of similar intensity.
I’m starting to think maybe Pagenaud will be advised to call it a day.