IndyCar: Death was avoided. IMS happy to give fan a new car

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway will get Robin Matthews a new car after her Chevy Cruze was collateral damage in a Kyle Kirkwood turn 2 crash during the Indy 500 Sunday.

If the wheel from Kirkwood’s car had flown into the grandstands, the Speedway could have had multiple fatalities on its hands and their insurance premiums would have gone through the roof.

Thankfully, the wheel flew into a nearby parking lot and hit the left front corner of Matthews Chevy Cruze instead and only one spectator receiving treatment at an infield medical center for minor injuries related to flying debris.

“I’ve talked to the Dallara guys, and we’re going to look at it,” IMS owner Roger Penske said to select media this week regarding the detaching tire.

“We have tethers on those [wheels] and I’ve never seen a wheel come off of those. That, to me, is the probably the scariest thing, and we’ve got to fix that so it doesn’t happen again. Our technical guys are going to have a look at it.”