Will Josef Newgarden Race At Mid-Ohio After Toronto Crash?

Josef Newgarden was to be medically re-evaluated by IndyCar after a mid-race crash in Sunday’s Honda Indy Toronto seemed to hurt the already injured driver. Will he make it to Ohio?

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Verizon IndyCar Series fans cringed Sunday when Josef Newgarden crashed during the 2016 Honda Indy Toronto – the second wreck in four races for the No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing driver.

Newgarden was unable to hold the wheel in Turn 5 at Exhibition Place and drove into the wall on Lap 78, but the incident was made worse as he appeared to be holding the hand he had already injured at Texas Motor Speedway on June 12.

So is he healthy? Will he be able to race when IndyCar goes to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in two weeks?

Racer says that Newgarden was checked and released in Toronto, and was to be re-evaluated for race clearance on Monday; however as of Monday evening, the league hadn’t made an official statement on his status, and neither had Newgarden.

His last Tweet was just a humorous farewell to the city:

See ya Toronto. pic.twitter.com/YVdjmNCXd2
— Josef Newgarden (@josefnewgarden) July 18, 2016

Unless Newgarden has completely destroyed his hand, it’s hard to imagine him not turning up at Mid-Ohio. He was back in the No. 20 car two weeks after his Texas crash, which is exactly the same amount of time he has to recover this time around.

And when he spoke after the Honda Indy Toronto, he didn’t sound as if he was in any severe pain, although he did concede that the pre-existing injury contributed to his ability to handle the new incident.

“It is an error on my part. I hate to blame it on an injury, but I hit the curb too hard and lost the wheel,” Newgarden said via a league statement. “I couldn’t hang on to the wheel. I didn’t have the strength to hold on to the wheel.”

When specifically asked about his hand, he continued, “It’s just sore. I wish my grip strength was better right now but it’s not. Probably not where I need to be. I should have stayed off the curb. I knew better than to hit it that hard with my grip strength where it is.”

So he may be hurt enough that his driving is affected but he’s certainly not asking for a relief driver.

And while Newgarden may not have all his grip strength, he has demonstrated plenty of speed going into the final races of the 2016 IndyCar season.

Since the scary wreck at Texas he finished eighth at Road America and then single-handedly dominated in the 2016 Iowa Corn 300 at Iowa Speedway. Newgarden led 282 of 300 laps in Iowa, and won by an impressive 4.28 seconds.

He had also been charging hard at Toronto before contact with Juan Pablo Montoya damaged a bumper pod and forced him into the pits for repairs.

So for him not to race at Mid-Ohio would be a huge blow – not just for him but for Ed Carpenter Racing and even for IndyCar. Newgarden currently sits fifth in league championship points and has been as high as second place; a title run certainly isn’t out of his reach and his three wins (so far) over the past two seasons have put a new buzz back into ECR.

Plus, how much of a story would it be for the league if a small team driver could challenge Penske and Ganassi’s championship aspirations, especially when that driver is a 25-year-old American and fans have been suggesting that IndyCar needs more U.S. stars?

Will Josef Newgarden race at Mid-Ohio? We don’t know for sure but all signs so far point to yes. And that is the best case scenario all around.

The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio takes place on Sunday, July 31.