Conor Daly is back in an NTT IndyCar Series car.
Daly has been called upon to drive the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing machine following a terrifying crash involving Simon Pagenaud on Saturday.
A wild ride for @simonpagenaud.
Another angle of Simon’s scary incident from Practice 2 at @Mid_Ohio.#INDYCAR // #Honda200 pic.twitter.com/gtW6WFLrtp
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) July 1, 2023
Pagenaud lost his brakes when traveling nearly at full speed into Turn 4 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. His car catapulted off the race surface though a travel trap and his car ended up on its side.
Following the crash Pagenaud was checked and released at the infield care center. While Pagenaud was released he was not cleared to return to racing on Sunday morning.
“To walk away from an accident like that is incredible,” team owner Mike Shank said. “This is obviously not a scenario we had planned for, but everyone at MSR has pitched in to get our backup car ready.”
Earlier this year Daly was released from his ride at Ed Carpenter Racing. Ryan Hunter Reay replaced him in his car.
Daly happened to be enjoying the activities at Mid-Ohio as he eyes a return to the series next year.
“Obviously I have to think about Simon. You hate to see someone wreck like that,” said Daly, via AP News. “The most important thing is to get him as healthy as possible, as soon as possible. This is his car and his group of folks and I am here to do the best job that I can for this team.
“I’ve known Mike for a long time and I’ve tested for his sports car team many years ago. I’ve always had a lot of respect for this organization. It’s an honor to be a part of this group and fill in. We will just do the best job that we can.”
Daly will start 27th in the field for the race at Mid-Ohio. In 2016 he scored a sixth place finish at the track.
