Explained: Why IndyCar didn't disqualify Santino Ferrucci despite Detroit GP technical violation

Santino Ferrucci had his best IndyCar race on Sunday, only to be clouded by controversy a day later. The AJ Foyt Racing driver finished in a career-best P2 at the Detroit GP, but the series officials found a technical infringement on his No. 14 Chevy in post-race technical inspection.

The combined weight of the driver and ballast (additional weight added to level the playing field between drivers of varying weights) was less than the required 185 pounds. The tolerance for this rule is one pound, but Ferrucci's combined weight was 1.8 pounds underweight.

Consequently, IndyCar fined the entry $25,000 and had 25 points deducted from the driver and entrant championships. They also had to forfeit the extra point Ferrucci earned for leading a lap, the engine points that Chevy earned, and the entire prize money he earned for the race.

However, Santino Ferrucci wasn't disqualified and retained his P2 finish, which caused a stir among fans on social media. The main reason for a non-disqualification was that his No. 14 AJFR complied with rule 14.4.1.1.1 of the 2025 IndyCar rulebook, which states that the minimum weight of the car should be 1785 pounds on road/street courses. His car was 10 pounds over that weight, as AJ Foyt Racing also emphasized in their statement.

So, from a sporting point of view, Ferrucci didn't have a weight advantage over his rivals. Moreover, this isn't the first instance of such an incident, and the following penalty. Alexander Rossi was in a similar situation in 2022, where he retained his race win at the IMS road course, despite a technical infraction regarding the ballast.

Former IndyCar president's comments on Alexander Rossi's 2022 incident justify Santino Ferrucci's non-disqualification in Detroit

Alexander Rossi's last race win in IndyCar came at the 2022 IndyCar GP at the IMS road course, in his last season with Andretti Autosport. However, in post-race technical inspection, the officials found a breach of rules on his No. 27 Honda.

It met the then-minimum requirement of 1700 pounds, but the way the team achieved it was illegal. The team used Rossi's water bottle as ballast, which wasn't permitted in the rulebook. A similar $25,000 fine and a 20-point deduction in the driver and entrant championships followed. However, he wasn't stripped of his win.

Then-IndyCar president Jay Frye explained the situation, saying, via The Race:

"From a sporting perspective, the car met minimum requirements. From a technical perspective, the way they achieved the weight is not allowed. To meet minimum weight, the drink bottle and its contents were used as car ballast, which is not permitted, and why the team is being fined and penalised."

This justification applies similarly to Santino Ferrucci, whose car met the overall minimum weight criteria but didn't meet the ballast criteria. Bottom line, the AJ Foyt Racing driver retains his runner-up finish to Kyle Kirkwood but drops from 10th to 14th in the championship standings after forfeiting 25 points.