Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden faces a race against time to be fit for this weekend's IndyCar round at Gateway, with the Team Penske driver admitting he is in two minds about competing as he nurses a foot injury sustained in his Indy 500 crash.
Newgarden hurt his left foot in the shunt that ended his bid for a third straight Indianapolis 500 victory, and soldiered through last weekend's Detroit Grand Prix on crutches and in a walking boot. He brought the car home 10th but cut a frustrated figure afterwards, feeling he had left performance on the table.
"I feel bad. I feel like the opportunity that the team put in place for this car was podium potential," Newgarden said.
The American went as far as to suggest his team would have been better served by a fit substitute, name-checking Penske sportscar driver Felipe Nasr.
"If they wanted to win the race, you put Felipe in this car. [...] He was ready to rock," he said.
Newgarden, who has raced through serious injuries before, said this setback was more debilitating than the broken collarbone and wrist he carried earlier in his career.
"This was worse. This is definitely a less advantageous situation," he said, though he declined to dwell on the pain. "I don't want to speak on [the pain] too much. It is what it is."
He also felt he became a target on track in Detroit as rivals sensed weakness.
"It was like everybody got the memo out there to use me up is what it kind of felt like, whenever they could — I felt like I was in just defense mode most of the race," Newgarden said.
With the physically punishing Detroit street race behind him, attention now turns to the high-speed Gateway oval — and whether Newgarden's foot can withstand another demanding weekend. By his own admission, he was torn about lining up, describing himself as "excited, but I'm in two minds right now" over the prospect, leaving his participation in genuine doubt.
For a driver whose season has already been derailed by Indianapolis heartbreak, sitting out would be another bitter blow. But with a long campaign still to run, Penske may yet have to weigh discretion against valour as the Gateway round approaches.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/newgarden-foot-injury-gateway-doubt-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
