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Ryan Briscoe to replace injured Hinchcliffe in Indy 500

Australian racer Ryan Briscoe will pilot the No. 5 Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda in this weekend's Indianapolis 500.

Ryan Briscoe, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda

Ryan Briscoe, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda

IndyCar Series

James Hinchcliffe crash
GTLM class winner Ryan Briscoe, Corvette Racing
James Hinchcliffe, Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda
Sam Schmidt
Ryan Briscoe, Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
Sam Schmidt

INDIANAPOLIS - Schmidt Peterson Motorsports has named a replacement driver for James Hinchcliffe, who suffered what was described as 'life-threatening' blood loss during an Indy 500 practice crash on Monday.

After a right front suspension failure, his car was sent into the wall at 125Gs and a wishbone pierced the safety cell of the machine, cutting through his legs. Hinchcliffe had qualified 24th on the grid, one day prior to the accident.

Australian racer Ryan Briscoe will fill the seat for the 500, a veteran IndyCar driver with 129 total starts and seven victories. This will be his tenth appearance in the May spectacle, posting a best result of fifth in both 2007 and 2012.

This will stand as the 33-year-old's first start of the current season after competing full-time with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2014. He has enjoyed a successful stint with Corvette Racing, taking class victories in both the Rolex 24 an Sebring 12 Hour endurance races this year.

Multiple options

"We explored quite a few options and felt confident in Briscoe," said Schmidt. "We were glad he was available and willing to drive for us with such short notice. Obviously this was not a situation we were expecting to be in for the biggest race of the year but we're making the best of it. Our thoughts and prayers are with James [Hinchcliffe] and his family right now while we work through the details of finding his replacement. We're excited to have an accomplished veteran in the seat of the No. 5 Arrow Electronics car."
 
Briscoe commented, "First and foremost, I feel absolutely terrible for Hinch. I wish him the best and a speedy recovery. Under the circumstances, I'm thrilled to have been given the opportunity to be here and fill in for him. I really hope to do a great job for Arrow Electronics, Lucas Oil and the SPM team, and I'm looking forward to being back here in the Indy 500 again."

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