Sting Ray Robb will be back in the cockpit of his No. 41 Goodheart Vet/Pray.com Chevrolet for AJ Foyt Enterprises in this weekend’s Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto following a frightening incident on the final lap of the race last Sunday at Iowa Speedway.
Robb’s car ran over the rear of the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet of Alexander Rossi after Rossi’s car was slowing due to running out of fuel. Robb’s car launched into the air before tumbling down the backstretch in the Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade.
“Everything worked as it was supposed to,” Robb said of the safety equipment in his NTT INDYCAR SERIES car.
“Pushing the last few laps, I could see that Rossi was slowing,” Robb said. “I didn't know to what extent. I looked up going into Turn 1 just to see where he was located. I think it was about three-quarters of the way through the turn, the closing rate was so massive. It's kind of like the worst-case scenario, when you're exiting a turn at that speed, with that closing rate, not knowing what other drivers are thinking or experiencing.”
The impact upon landing wasn’t as severe as Robb expected. That’s a testament to safety features built into every NTT INDYCAR SERIES car, Robb said.
“I wouldn't change a thing about this car,” he said. “I think it's as safe as it's ever been. I think that INDYCAR has done a great job of looking at and analyzing past crashes and adapting to make cars even stronger or better for the future. I'm sure they'll do the same here. I'm sure there will be a little thing here and there that they could find. From my perspective, everything worked as it should have, and I'm safe because of that.
“The belts did their job. Everything worked as it was supposed to. I didn't have any cuts or anything abnormal. I had some bruises on my hips from the lap belts working, as they should have. I feel surprisingly good considering the magnitude of the event. I feel very, very grateful to be where I'm at today.”
The only injury Robb admitted to having is a blister on his finger from touching the aeroscreen while climbing out of the car.
“It turns out when you take titanium and scrape it across the ground for a few hundred feet, it gets hot,” he said. “Don't recommend. You'll get a blister from touching hot titanium there.”
Robb was transported to a hospital in Des Moines for precautionary evaluation and tests, all of which showed no injuries. Robb was released from the hospital Sunday night and re-evaluated Monday by the INDYCAR medical team, which cleared him to drive this weekend in Toronto.
Idaho native Robb said his confidence isn’t shaken from the crash, and he hopes to build on the positives from the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend at Iowa. He finished a season-best 15th in Saturday night’s Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart and started a career-best 20th for Sunday’s 250-lap race.