IndyCar: Fernando Alonso bumped from 2019 Indy 500 field

Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso has been bumped from the field for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso returned to Indianapolis Motor Speedway to attempt to make just his second start in IndyCar and his second start in the crown jewel on the IndyCar schedule, the Indianapolis 500, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

But the Last Row Bump Day qualifying session ended in heartbreak for the 37-year-old Spaniard and his McLaren Racing team.

As Juncos Racing’s Kyle Kaiser prepared to close out this qualifying session with his four-lap qualifying attempt around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway Indiana, Alonso sat provisionally in the 33rd starting position, right on the bubble.

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Alonso had recorded a four-lap average speed of 227.353 miles per hour in his #66 Chevrolet in his qualifying attempt earlier in the session, which featured six drivers and would ultimately result in three drivers locking themselves into the field of 33 and three drivers being bumped out of the field.

Kaiser crossed the finish line on the fourth and final lap of his qualifying run with a four-lap average speed of 227.372 miles per hour to secure himself the 33rd and final position on the starting grid for this race.

Unless McLaren can make a deal with one of the 33 teams that successfully qualified for this year’s Indy 500, Alonso will be taking part in the race as a spectator — if even that.

Alonso’s failed qualifying attempt for this race and his failed week leading up to this qualifying attempt in general came after he made his debut in the race two years ago and had success in doing so.

Driving a Honda-powered car that was fielded via a partnership between McLaren and powerhouse team Andretti Autosport, he qualified in fifth place for this race and led 27 laps before an engine failure on lap 180 with 21 laps remaining relegated him to a 24th place finish.

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Whether or not Fernando Alonso returns to the Indianapolis 500 to complete his quest of becoming just the second driver to win all three races of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, the Indy 500, the Monaco Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, remains to be seen. But would he return with McLaren after the disaster that was this past week for him and the team? That, too, remains to be seen.