There was so much action to pick out from the Grand Prix of Madison, it’s hard to know what to start with.
The overriding incident of the weekend happened just 10 minutes from the end of IndyCar‘s 260-lap foray around Gateway on Saturday evening.
With a caution set to end, Josef Newgarden waited until the very last second to launch his car down the pit straight.
Chaos unfolded behind as Alexander Rossi climbed over the back of Will Power and sent them both into the wall, causing a red flag.
Bryan Herta reveals feeling in the IndyCar paddock
It’s a matter that Bryan Herta believes wasn’t adjudicated fairly, and that the paddock is starting to notice the trend.
“I wasn’t saying that Colton didn’t deserve a penalty, what I’m saying is there is a growing feeling in the paddock there is not a level playing field,” he told NBCSports.com.
“One guy who clearly caused a three-car accident checking up the field and wins the race gets no penalty. Then somebody else, racing hard, has to block a guy and gets a penalty.
“What Josef did was worse because he caused an accident taking three cars out of the race. Why does that not rise to the level of a penalty? His own teammates are flipping him off.”
Will Power vented his frustration at his teammate after the race, feeling that he had played a significant role in the incident.
Herta calls for Newgarden penalty after restart crash
The restart procedure is something that pops up frequently in driver’s meetings before IndyCar events, with jump starters a key topic of discussion – this time, it was the leader’s pace at the centre of the controversy.
“He accelerated and slowed down. They tell them in every single driver’s meeting how to manage it.”
“It’s a growing feeling in the paddock,” Herta continued. “Maybe I’m the first one to say that, but it’s what people feel.
“If Colton deserved a penalty, the other one certainly should have been a penalty. That’s my whole point. Colton blocked Linus. That’s fine. They gave him a penalty. Fine.
“But how do you not penalize the guy that checked up the whole field and caused a crash, how is that not worse?
“How is causing a three-car accident with a car flying through the air not worse than a guy throwing a block with a lap to go. How is that not worse?”
It’s something that will be heavily discussed ahead of this week’s final road course race of the weekend in Portland, where Herta’s son – Colton, will be searching for victory in a bid to claw back a 59-point championship deficit.