Penske drivers Josef Newgarden and Will Power have been sent to the back of the Indianapolis 500 field this week for violating technical regulations, Indycar announced Monday.
Newgarden and Power came in 11th and 12th in the most legendary races on the IndyCar calendar, but are now demoted to 32nd and 33rd on the grid, respectively.
Penske’s other driver, Scott McLaughlin, remains in his 10th place start position.
The Grid Drop is one of several penalties distributed to Roger Pensuke’s operation after it was discovered that two of the three Chevrolet-powered cars were running the modified rear attenuator, the standard for all teams on Sunday.
Additionally, IndyCar fined $100,000 on each entry and halted their respective team strategists.
Both Newgarden and Power will forfeit Indy 500 qualification points.
“The integrity of the Indianapolis 500 is of paramount importance, and it is clear that this violation of the IndyCar Rules for changes to this part will use it “as it was supplied.”
“The penalty isn’t just starting a place where the car might have qualified anyway if given the opportunity. The car belongs to the field as two of the fastest 33. But starting with the field tail is a proper penalty in this example.”
The controversy over the revised rear attenuator erupted Sunday, sending shockwaves to the paddock.
Pensuke retracted the New Garden and Power car from the top 12 gunfight in response to the steward’s discovery, but McLaughlin missed the session after hurting the car in a crash during practice.
However, McLaughlin escaped the penalty after discovering that Indycar “has discovered that the car actually used a legal and unchanged attenuator.