INDIANAPOLIS — Stefan Wilson fractured his again throughout a heavy crash with Katherine Legge in follow for the Indianapolis 500 on Monday, and the injured driver is not going to be allowed again into his automotive for the 107th operating of “The Best Spectacle in Racing.”

The 2 British drivers had been going by way of Turns 1 and a couple of about an hour into the two-hour session when all the subject appeared to decelerate. Legge closed quick on Wilson and hit the rear of his automotive, sending each skidding into the wall. Legge hit with a glancing blow to the rear of her automotive, however Wilson was pointed practically head-on when he made contact with the SAFER barrier.

The protection crew spent about 10 minutes fastidiously extricating Wilson from his automotive. He was positioned on a stretcher, immobilized and carrying a neck brace, and he gave a fast thumbs-up earlier than he was loaded into an ambulance and brought to the hospital.

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing mentioned Wilson fractured his twelfth thoracic vertebrae and would stay hospitalized for remark.

“I can inform you that he is doing nicely,” mentioned Dr. Julia Vaizer, chief medical director for IndyCar and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

It was unclear who will step into Wilson’s automotive for Sunday’s race, although JR Hildebrand has been on the speedway. He has made 12 consecutive begins right here, practically successful as a rookie in 2011 earlier than ending second, however he couldn’t put collectively a experience for this 12 months.

Three of Hildebrand’s begins within the Indy 500 had been with Dreyer & Reinbold, together with an Eleventh-place end in 2018.

Wilson’s brother, Justin Wilson, was the final IndyCar driver killed on a observe. He was competing in a 2015 race at Pocono when Sage Karam crashed forward of him, and a chunk of the automotive struck Wilson within the helmet and despatched him into the wall.

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Legge is the one feminine driver on this 12 months’s Indy 500 subject, and he or she was the one driver from struggling Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing who made the 33-car grid on the primary day of qualifying. Christian Lundgaard and Jack Harvey joined her Sunday when Harvey bumped teammate Graham Rahal within the closing seconds of a dramatic qualifying run.

Legge’s group mentioned it might try to restore her automotive in time for Carb Day on Friday, when groups get one final likelihood on the observe earlier than the race. It was already eradicating shattered items from the chassis by the point Monday’s session ended.

“I do know it is one other blow to the group,” Legge mentioned. “After yesterday, these guys do not deserve it. It isn’t proper.”

Will Energy paced the sector with a lap of 229.22 mph on Monday, offering a jolt of confidence to Workforce Penske, which put solely the 2018 Indy 500 winner within the Quick 12 of qualifying. Scott Dixon, Takuma Sato and pole sitter Alex Palou had been subsequent for Chip Ganassi Racing, because the group thrived in the identical type of warmth anticipated on race day.

“We have been having vibration issues. I believe we considerably bought on prime of that,” mentioned Energy, who turned 88 laps, the second most within the session. “I believe the automotive is fairly good. I believe we’re in a great spot, a extremely great spot.”

Pato O’Ward, who will begin fifth for Arrow McLaren, shut down follow early because the group tried to diagnose an issue.

“We simply discovered an enormous disparity from set to set,” he mentioned. “It is simply irritating as a result of, you already know, one run shall be fantastic and one other shall be, ‘What is that this?’ We simply want to research and see what is going on on, see if it is an issue from our facet or not.”

Dale Coyne Racing additionally was scrambling after {an electrical} drawback developed in David Malukas’ automotive.

“We solely managed one or two runs. We’re attempting to determine it out,” Malukas mentioned. “We will have quite a bit to do on Carb Day.”