ELKHART LAKE, WI – As Chevrolet’s engine issues continue, the problem will now directly affect the starting position for the Grand Prix at Road America.
Chevrolet changed four engines following Friday’s practice session, and two of those cars — Santino Ferrucci’s No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing and Alexander Rossi’s No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing — have exceeded the approved four engines that cars are permitted to use in an IndyCar season. As a result, IndyCar Officiating has dished out a six-position starting grid penalty for both entries in Sunday’s race.
Ferrucci and Rossi will start the race six spots lower than where they qualify Saturday. Two Arrow McLaren engines — Pato O’Ward’s No. 5 and Nolan Siegel’s No. 6 — were also changed, but neither of those entries have exceeded the approved engine change-out total.
A Chevrolet spokesperson said the engine changes this weekend are “due to the same supplier quantity issue” that caused Chevrolet to replace eight engines on seven cars the day before the Detroit Grand Prix three weeks ago. On the morning of the Detroit Grand Prix, General Motors president Mark Reuss called it a valve coating issue.
“It’s a coating issue,” Reuss said. “If you can imagine the valve sitting in the guide with a wrong coating, over time, you get to see the valve chuck off the seat. And so it becomes fatigue.”
With still nine races to go, Ferrucci and Rossi’s cars may not be the only ones to suffer a grid penalty as the season continues. If those two cars must change their engines again, they’d be given another grid penalty at the event following the next engine change.
On ovals, the grid penalty is nine starting spots.
Chevrolet, which is responsible for 12 of the 25 full-time entries, has not been able to solve and completely negate its engine issues. As a result, the problems will continue to affect teams in the near future, with Ferrucci and Rossi being affected by the issue this weekend.
Zion Brown is IndyStar’s motorsports reporter. Follow him at @z10nbr0wn. Get IndyStar’s motor sports coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Motor Sports newsletter. Subscribe to the YouTube channel IndyStar TV: IndyCar for a behind-the-scenes look at IndyCar and expert analysis.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Chevrolet engine issues persist, giving 2 IndyCar drivers grid penalties at Road America
Reporting by Zion Brown, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Zion Brown, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
