May 19, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Team Penske driver Scott McLaughlin (3) makes his way out of turn one Monday, May 19, 2025, during practice for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Mykal McEldowney-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
IndyCar president Doug Boles said Wednesday that "absolutely it's a miss" that Team Penske raced with modified attenuators for at least a year before an IndyCar tech team member finally caught the infraction Sunday prior to qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.
An attenuator is placed in the rear of each Indy Car solely for safety reasons, to absorb energy when a car crashes into a wall backward. For this reason, per Boles, attenuators are not allowed to be tampered with.
