Indy 500 runner-up Ericsson penalized to rear for unapproved car modifications

Indianapolis 500 runner-up Marcus Ericsson was penalized to the rear of the 33-car field along with Andretti Global teammate Kyle Kirkwood on Monday after their cars were found to have unapproved modifications in the post-race inspection that could have helped their aerodynamic efficiency.

Ericsson finished second to Alex Palou on Sunday when he was unable to make a winning pass in the closing laps. He now will be credited with a 31st-place finish while Kirkwood, who had finished sixth, has been relegated to 32nd.

IndyCar said the modifications made by Andretti Global were to the Energy Management System covers provided by Dallara, the company that provides the chassis for the series. The rulebook states that those parts must be used as supplied.

Ericsson and Kirkwood had to forfeit their prize money and championship points from their original finish, and instead will receive the money and points for their penalized finish. Each of the cars also was fined $100,000 and the competition managers for the teams have been suspended for the upcoming race on the streets of Detroit.

The No. 90 car of Callum Ilott also failed post-race technical inspection after it failed to meet the minimum endplate height and location specification. Prema Racing was handed the same penalties as Andretti Global, which means rather than 12th, Ilott will be credited with finishing last in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”

IndyCar's inspection process came under scrutiny a week before the race, when the Team Penske cars of two-time winner Josef Newgarden and Will Power were found to have had unapproved modifications to the rear shock-absorbing attenuator.

Newgarden and Power were unable to compete in the second round of qualifying, and instead had to start in the final row of the 11-row grid. Newgarden ended up having a fuel pump issue and finished 25th and Power finished 19th, though both of them will move up three spots following the penalties to Andretti Global and Prema Racing.