As his team-mate was celebrating his fourth Indianapolis 500 victory, Jack Harvey once again found himself wondering what could have been.
After recovering from a blistered tire in qualifying that left him starting down in 20th position, Harvey slowly and steadily worked his way through the field.
By lap 140, he had cracked into the top 10, but then on the penultimate pit stop of the day his crew ran into trouble with a wheel nut.
Considerable time was spent getting the wheel properly attached, and Harvey lost all the ground he had gained throughout the day. By the end of the 200-lap race, he was able to salvage an 18th place finish that was not representative of his pace.
Bad luck seems to have latched on to the 28-year-old all season, and he was not able to shake free from it at this year’s Indy 500 either.
Ever the class act, Harvey made sure to congratulate his team-mate Helio Castroneves after his win and also each member of his own crew, seemingly able to shrug off the disappointment almost immediately.
While celebrating Castroneves’ victory, team owner Mike Shank took some time to acknowledge the heartbreak the British driver suffered.
“I feel terrible for Jack Harvey today,” said Shank. “A wheel nut came out of a socket, ruined a for sure top five, six, seven run.
“He drove his ass off all day. His day I coming. He’s elevated his program and our program in the process. I can’t wait to get to Detroit with him.”
Team co-owner Jim Meyer echoed the sentiments about his team’s long-time driver, saying it could be him who bring the team its next Indy 500 win.
“I believe Mike and I will be sitting up here, maybe not in the too distant future, with Jack Harvey celebrating a win with him here as well.”
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