INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A crash on the first lap of the IndyCar season-opening race followed another six weeks later, on the opening lap at Long Beach.
Brazilian Helio Castroneves has seen his miserable start to the season suffer upsets in all five races, including last week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where an engine problem during practice cost him his entire session at the track.
Now it’s time to prepare for the Indianapolis 500, and Castroneves – one of only four four-time winners of the event – is confident he and the Meyer Shank Racing team can turn the tide during the “greatest motorsport spectacle”. . ,
The Brazilian and his French teammate Simon Pagenaud sit 21st and 23rd respectively in the table, with their team the second lowest ranked full-time outfit in IndyCar, ahead of only AJ Foyt Racing.
“I don’t panic, but I’ve never liked average performances. Always,” team owner Michael Shank told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “It’s not something I take lightly. I want to go out and bang my head against the wall. That’s what I really want to do.
“But we need to show strength within the organization so that we can overcome some of these barriers. And when we do, it will be great.”
Castroneves has a similar attitude, drawing comparisons to seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton, who is trying to rebuild the Mercedes team as a true competitor.
“Sometimes there are moments when I feel that everyone, not just me, but everyone is in a bad situation,” Castroneves said. “But this is what happens to those who find themselves saying ‘Oh, why me?’ No, I just have to go ahead and work hard. Sometimes you have to look in other areas and that’s what we’re doing now.”
The problem for MSR is that it has a hard time diagnosing why its cars aren’t competitive. Castroneves’ 10th-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway marked the only time the team finished in the top 10 this season.
Castroneves and Pagenaud, who were teammates at Team Penske, have a combined five Indianapolis 500 victories and one IndyCar championship.
