Harvey Finishes 21st in the Indianapolis 500 for Meyer Shank Racing

Meyer Shank Racing with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver Jack Harvey finished 21st in the 2019 Indianapolis 500 in the No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda on Sunday. The race marked the sixth NTT IndyCar race of the season for Meyer Shank Racing and is also the sole oval race that the team will compete in during the 2019 season as MSR continues to build the IndyCar side of the organization.
 
Making his third Indianapolis 500 start for Meyer Shank Racing (MSR), Harvey took the green flag from 25th on the grid and quickly settled into a solid race pace to move up to run 22nd. After setting the fastest lap of the race at that point ahead of lap 50, the team called him into the pits on lap 36 for the first of several well-executed pit stops from the MSR squad.  
 
As the race played out at a near-record pace, Harvey raced forward to run in the top ten by lap 68. The team took advantage of a caution with a lap 77 top-off of fuel. Harvey then ran as high as third as the field raced past the 100th lap of the 200-lap event. As the pit stops cycled through, Harvey continued to work his tools inside the cockpit of the No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM entry as he fought for grip in the muggy May conditions.
 
A full course caution re-set the field with 53 laps to go as Harvey restarted from 19th in the order. With anticipated rain holding off, the field continued to run at a wide-open pace. Peeling into pit lane on lap 174 from fourth in the order for the final stop of the day, the sequence didn’t go as planned after the team was assessed a penalty for a pit lane speeding violation.
 
A multi-car crash on lap 178 set the stage for a final 13 lap shootout. Harvey held position through the final moments of the race to bring home 21st position. Several AutoNation and SiriusXM partners were on hand to show their trackside support on Sunday.
 
“We started 25th and finished 21st but it was a very trying day,” said Harvey. “This was the most challenging Indianapolis 500 that I have been a part of. We started off the month with a podium at the INDYCAR Grand Prix and we were hoping to continue that momentum into the Indianapolis 500. Halfway through the race, I thought the car was going to end up in the wall because of how unbalanced it felt. We didn’t have the pace that we had all month in practice and during the race is when you need it the most. It was an overall average result and an average day.”

“It was a very tough race and we were on track to be somewhere in the 10th to 14th place range today but the drive through penalty for the pit speed violation ended our day,” said Mike Shank. “We keep learning a lot and we want to come back to do better next year. Overall, it was a good month. We are continuing to gain on our program. I don’t have a lot to complain about but we need to be better here at the Indy 500. We will refocus, come back and make sure we are the best we can be.”

The next NTT IndyCar race for Meyer Shank Racing will be the Rev Group Grand Prix at Road America on June 23rd. But first the team will head straight to the next round of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition next weekend for the Detroit Grand Prix where Meyer Shank Racing returns as reigning winners from the past two years.

MSR PR