The #21 ECR-Chevrolet driver, who qualified on the front row for the second straight year, had been running in third place before the pitstops, behind the Chip Ganassi Racing-Hondas of Scott Dixon and Alex Palou. He was playing it conservative and saving fuel as the two ahead of him swapped back and forth.
Following the first round of stops he was still in third but as the rest of the field made their stops he went around Dixon to claim second place.
However, going through Turn 2 on the 39th lap, the car snapped out of control and the Dutch youngster struck the wall hard.
On being released from the infield car medical center, he told IndyCar Radio: “I’m sorry to the team and everyone cheering me on. This could have been a very nice day.
“It felt a little different than it had in practice, not a lot of grip. I couldn’t follow Palou super-close. But we made a change on the car during the pitstop and it felt better, so that snap mid-corner in Turn 2 just caught me off-guard.
“It’s very unfortunate.”
The shunt brought out the first caution period of the race.
