Pato O’Ward was credited with the win on the Streets of St. Petersburg following a rules violation that disqualifies Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin from the March 10 race in Florida, IndyCar said in a release Wednesday.
All three Team Penske cars were flagged for inspection. Newgarden (driver of the No. 2) won the race and McLaughlin (No. 3) finished third behind O’Ward, but those results are being tossed by the circuit after an investigation showed they violated “push to pass” parameters.
Will Power’s No. 12 was penalized 10 points as officials found he did not benefit from the violation, IndyCar said.
“An extensive review of data from the race on the Streets of St. Petersburg revealed that Team Penske manipulated the overtake system so that the No. 2, 3 and 12 cars had the ability to use Push to Pass on starts and restarts. According to the INDYCAR rulebook, use of overtake is not available during championship races until the car reaches the alternate start-finish line,” a release confirming the penalties reads.
“It was determined that the No. 2 and the No. 3 gained a competitive advantage by using Push to Pass on restarts while the No. 12 did not. Additionally, all three entries have been fined $25,000 and will forfeit all prize money associated with the Streets of St. Petersburg race.”
The delay in announcing the penalties and updated official race results was prompted by a review of data and another look at the Team Penske cars, which took place Sunday during the warmup session at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
–Field Level Media
