Scott McLaughlin shares update on Tony Kanaan feud that turned 'surprisingly' personal

Scott McLaughlin has given an update on his social media feud with Arrow McLaren Team Principal Tony Kanaan. The two were at loggerheads after McLaughlin bumped Nolan Siegel at the Detroit GP, causing the McLaren driver to spin and lose multiple positions on track after a restart.

Kanaan immediately took to the social media platform X in the middle of the race to react to a clip posted by IndyCar's official account showing the incident.

"Oh ok then...." he wrote.

The 50-year-old's comment sparked controversy among fans, with Scott McLaughlin reacting to it post-race. That led to a sour back-and-forth with Tony Kanaan on X, including the McLaren boss taking personal shots at the Team Penske driver.

Ahead of IndyCar's next race at the WWT Raceway in Madison, Illinois, McLaughlin revealed how they have cleared the air since.

"I mean, me and TK are completely fine. I didn't go into it. I just didn't want to. Like, I mean, we can. We cleared the air. There was nothing to really clear. It's like he clapped back, and I clapped back. It's just how it is. I thought it was funny that he posted during the race. I, like, responded. I didn't think he was going to respond the next time, but he did," the No. 3 Chevy driver said via ASAP Sports on Wednesday.

A reporter also asked McLaughlin about Kanaan taking a 'personal' dig at him over his crashing out on the pace lap of the Indy 500 while warming up his tires. The Team Penske driver described how 'surprised' he was about that particular jab. He said:

"Like I said, I was surprised that he did. Yeah, it is what it is. That was his decision."

Similar to the feud on social media, there was also no winner in the on-track incident between Scott McLaughlin and Nolan Siegel in Detroit. The former got a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact and came out near the back of the grid. While he climbed back up to finish in P12, Siegel could do no better than P19.

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Scott McLaughlin won't change himself over the feud with Tony Kanaan

109th Running Of The Indianapolis 500 - Practice and Previews - Source: Getty

Scott McLaughlin is known for his banter with other drivers or fans on social media. Ahead of IndyCar's next race, he emphasized how that part of his personality won't change just because of this controversy with Tony Kanaan.

Elaborating on the 'beef', the New Zealand driver said:

"Me and TK have always sort of talked on social media. Have been completely fine. It's not like a year-long feud or things like that that I've seen around. It's just one of those deals where, like, someone's going to call me out, I'll clap back as well. It's just who I am. I'm not going to change."

In the championship battle, Arrow McLaren is doing considerably better than Team Penske. Pato O'Ward and Christian Lundgaard stand P2 and P4 in the standings, while Penske's best driver, Will Power, is in P5. Scott McLaughlin, a preseason title favorite, is in P8.

However, the Roger Penske-led team is a favorite to emerge victorious at the next IndyCar race at the 1.25-mile WWT Raceway oval, with Josef Newgarden as the defending winner.