Kimball scores third top-10 finish of season at the Indianapolis 500

SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing (NNCGR) driver Charlie Kimball finished ninth in Round 5 of the IZOD IndyCar Series at the 97th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi team ran a highly-strategized race, which started from 19th position and endured multiple on-track battles that led to a record-breaking number of lead changes (68 among 14 drivers) over the 200-lap race.

Charlie Kimball, Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

Photo by: Kenneth May

In the early stages of the 200-lap race, the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team detected a malfunction in the car which caused them to make pit stops early on. By the second lap, Kimball would fall as deep in the field as 33rd position where the team would make a stop to decipher the issue.

They found there was a gear position sensor failure that was causing a misfire. Overall, Kimball would be the only driver to make eight pit stops among the eventual top-10 finishers.

After resolving the issue, the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi team fought a hard battle through strategy and heavy traffic to move to the middle of the field where they would spend the majority of the race alongside teammates.

With eight laps remaining, Kimball and the No. 83 NovoLog FlexPen car battled into the top-10 before a caution was thrown. The course returned to green with three laps remaining, where Kimball would nab the ninth spot before another caution was thrown.

The incident caused the race to end under caution, where Kimball would eventually cross the finish line in ninth-place to score his third top-10 of the season (fourth- Barber Motorsports Park, fifth-Streets of Sao Paulo).

With the result, Kimball is now 11th in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 106 markers, -62 points behind leader Marco Andretti.

Honda is second in the manufacturer point standings with 33 points, trailing Chevrolet with 42.

NNCGR