IndyCar star Pato O'Ward was taken to the medical center shortly after his Mexico GP FP1 outing in Lando Norris' McLaren MCL39. The Mexican driver, who competes for Arrow McLaren in IndyCar and also serves as McLaren's F1 reserve driver, was fulfilling a regulation that mandates teams to field rookie drivers in two practice sessions per car per season.As per ESPN, he participated in FP1 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez despite having food poisoning. O'Ward's condition worsened after he got out of the car following the one-hour session, during which he completed 30 laps.McLaren had to cancel his post-FP1 media commitments as the food poisoning symptoms and dehydration got worse. Pato O'Ward had severe diarrhea and was cared for at the track's medical center, including receiving IV fluids and medication for stomach pain. The doctors also monitored his heart rate.O'Ward supposedly received a lot of messages and support from his fans after the news of his illness was made public. The 25-year-old responded to those with a post on X, with a photo of him holding an Electrolit solution, a rehydration solution. In the caption, he wrote:"Here we gooo. Your messages and support today are appreciated ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹"Pato O'Ward also made fun of his ill condition in an X post prior to this one, where he seemingly referred to the severe nature of his diarrhea."I needed a cork today 😂😂," he wrote.Pato O'Ward @PatricioOWardLINKme hizo falta un corcho hoy😂😂O'Ward finished 13th-fastest in FP1, 1.3 seconds slower than table-topper Charles Leclerc, and around nine-tenths slower than teammate Oscar Piastri, who was fourth-fastest.Pato O'Ward grateful for 'passionate and loud' Mexican fans for making his F1 weekend specialPato O'Ward greets fans at the F1 Mexico Grand Prix - Practice - Source: GettyBorn in Monterey, Mexico, Pato O'Ward is IndyCar's most popular driver and draws the biggest crowds during pre-race weekend autograph signing sessions. At F1's Mexico GP this year, he was the only home driver, with Sergio Perez absent from the grid for the first time in over a decade.McLaren released statements from all its drivers after day one of the weekend. O'Ward reflected on his experience in front of his home crowd, saying:"Being back on track in Mexico is so special to me. All week, the fans have been passionate and loud, making me feel right at home again. I want to thank the team for putting me in the seat. We ran through the programme we had planned for the day successfully, and I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to support Lando and Oscar on their championship runs with time in the car today. I’m excited to see the team finish up the weekend strong."In FP2, where the quickest time set by Max Verstappen was nearly a second quicker than Charles Leclerc's FP1 time, Lando Norris was fourth-fastest, just two-and-a-half tenths slower than the Red Bull driver. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri was down in P12, nearly eight-and-a-half tenths slower than Verstappen.