Théo Pourchaire continues his exploration of American circuits in IndyCar. This week, he stopped in Wisconsin at its Road America circuit. Here’s a recap of the weekend for the Grasse native.
It was a tumultuous start to the week as Théo Pourchaire continued his IndyCar journey. After last week’s collision with Agustín Canapino, Théo Pourchaire faced a wave of hatred from the Argentinian’s fans. He felt compelled to issue a message on social media, calling for an end to the harassment. His team, Arrow McLaren, also responded and, after many twists and turns, decided to suspend its partnership with the Argentine driver’s team, Juncos Hollinger Racing.
In this rather tense context, one might understand if the Grasse native’s performances were affected. Yet, that was not the case.
A Complicated Start to the Weekend
The practice sessions were mixed for the driver. During the first practice session while learning the track, he finished 18th. The following day, rain was a factor in the second practice session, but he didn’t make any mistakes and managed to secure 9th place.
For the qualifying, things got a bit more complicated. He started in the second group, and after some misunderstandings between the team and the driver, he finished 9th in his group. This wasn’t enough to enter the second phase of qualification, so Théo Pourchaire had to settle for 18th place. Slightly disappointed with his qualifying result given the pace of his car, he remained optimistic: “It will be difficult to start from so far back on this track, but we have the pace to gain positions.”
A Rather Positive Race
Challenging start for the driver from Grasse, as he narrowly avoided contact with Jack Harvey, who was attempting to overtake him. A crash involving the top three forced him to pass through the grass, but it allowed him to gain a few positions. A strategic race awaited Théo Pourchaire. With a total of three pit stops for hard tires, it was difficult for him to overtake others. The numerous pit stops by his competitors, some longer than others, allowed him to gain a few spots. Ultimately, he finished in 13th place by overtaking Rosenqvist with 2 laps to go. This progression allowed him to take the 21st position in the driver standings with 75 points, behind Pietro Fittipaldi and ahead of Agustín Canapino.
