99th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race starting lineup
Under the circumstances, Ryan Briscoe didn't think twice about accepting the short-notice request from Verizon IndyCar Series team co-owner Sam Schmidt to drive in the 99th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.
Briscoe, 33, will fill in for the injured James Hinchcliffe in the No. 5 Arrow/Lucas Oil Honda for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports on May 24.
Hinchcliffe, who underwent surgery May 18 for a pelvic and upper left thigh injury suffered in a crash in practice earlier in the day, is recovering and was tranferred May 20 out of the Intensive Care Unit at IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Upon further evaluation, it was determined that Hinchcliffe will require no further procedures and is expected to make a full recovery from his injuries. Additional updates to Hinchcliffe's condition will be released when available.
"First and foremost, I feel absolutely terrible for Hinch. I wish him the best and a speedy recovery," said Briscoe, who arrived May 20 in Indianapolis to begin preparations with the team.
"You sort of prepare for this race a year out. You visualize how you're going to go through practice, all the prep you're going to do, and something like this comes up and you throw that all out the window," Briscoe said. "I feel with my experience and the experience the team has, the experience that Hinch has had with (race engineer) Allen McDonald putting this car in really good condition for the race, I feel really confident that even with a few laps I'll be able to find my groove again."
INDYCAR granted Briscoe a one-hour familiarization session on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval following the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires practice and he'll also the 32 other drivers on the racetrack for the final practice session (11 a.m.-noon ET; NBCSN) May 22 during Coors Light Carb Day. Briscoe will start 32nd based on entrant points.
"Considering everything, we still have high expectations of getting to the front," he added.
Briscoe will make his 10th Indianapolis 500 start and 130th overall in Indy car racing. He was the 2012 pole sitter for the 500 Mile Race and tied his best finish of fifth from 2007. Last year, he started 30th in the NTT Data entry for Chip Ganassi Racing Teams and finished 18th.
Briscoe, 33, a former Panasonic Toyota Racing Formula One test driver, moved to the Verizon IndyCar Series in 2005 with Target Chip Ganassi Racing. He has a best season finish of third in 2009 with Team Penske. Briscoe is in his first season as a full-time driver with Corvette Racing in the GTLM class of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.
In 2005, Briscoe's No. 33 entry made rearward contact with the SAFER Barrier between Turns 1 and 2 during his first qualifications attempt for the Indianapolis 500. He returned to claim the 24th starting position and finished 10th in the race. Fourteen weeks later, he suffered upper-body injuries in a crash at Chicagoland Speedway.
The car that Hinchcliffe was driving made hard right-side contact with the Turn 3 SAFER Barrier and slid on its right side all the way into Turn 4 about 50 minutes into the scheduled 12:30-4 p.m. (ET) practice. Hinchcliffe, who was awake when the Holmatro Safety Team arrived on the scene, and was transported by ground to the nearby hospital. A Honda spokesman said the right-front suspension failed as Hinchcliffe's car was entering the turn and he lost steering.
He had just turned a lap of 223.916 mph and was completing his 23rd lap in the session. Cars returned for a 4:15-6 p.m. practice -- the penultimate track time in preparation for the Indy 500. On May 17, Hinchcliffe qualified on the outside of Row 8 with a four-lap average speed of 223.519 mph.
"We explored quite a few options and felt confident in Briscoe," Schmidt said. "We were glad he was available and willing to drive for us with such short notice. Obviously, this was not a situation we were expecting to be in for the biggest race of the year but we're making the best of it. Our thoughts and prayers are with James and his family right now."
Hinchcliffe, 28, of suburban Toronto, is in his first season with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. He won the inaugural Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana on April 12 and has one other top-10 finish (seventh in the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park on April 26) in five races. In 73 starts covering five Verizon IndyCar Series seasons, Hinchcliffe has four victories and 19 top-five finishes.
In four Indianapolis 500 starts, he has a best finish of sixth in 2012. He qualified second in 2014 while with Andretti Autosport.