Andretti fined, docked for chassis assembly violation at Thermal

03/26/2025 12:03 PM

Colton Herta's No. 26 Andretti Global Honda failed post-race technical inspection at The Thermal Club for the incorrect assembly of its front suspension, resulting in penalties to the team.

In response to James Hinchcliffe's life-threatening crash at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2015 where the unabated impact with the Turn 3 wall pushed the lower rear suspension A-arm leg at the front of the car through its mounting point in the chassis and speared the Canadian's backside, IndyCar mandated the use of new anti-intrusion mounting plates to prevent the front suspension's lower rear suspension legs from punching through the car and into the cockpit in future crashes.

Those single anti-intrusion plates have been in place for a decade, and in an effort to increase safety with the heavier hybrid cars in use today, IndyCar updated its requirements in February, calling for two plates to be used as the new standard.

After the race at Thermal, where Herta finished fourth and improved to eighth in the drivers' championship, IndyCar's technical inspectors found the front suspension's lower rear legs carried single anti-intrusion plates and were not updated to the new double-plate mandate.

As a result, the series has fined the team $25,000 and taken 10 points from the No. 26 car in the entrants' championship, which moved it from eighth to 10th in the standings.

Herta was not subject to a fine or loss of drivers' points due to the series ruling the infraction to be a non-race procedure penalty.