Will Power has been diagnosed with mild concussion, which led to the Australian racer missing the opening round of the IndyCar Series around the streets of St. Petersburg.
The Team Penske racer suffered a heavy incident during the opening practice session of the weekend on Friday, which occurred during the relatively high speed section betweens Turns 9 and 10.
The cause of the incident was not car related, after Power simply lost control whilst trying to adjust the brake bias on his steering wheel.
Immediately after the incident Power was assessed by INDYCAR’s medical team, with the 2014 champion showing no signs of injury.
Power returned to the St. Petersburg street course later that same day for practice two, topping the timing sheets in the process.
The Australian continued the following day despite feeling considerably worse, still managing to dominate proceedings and gain pole position for the IndyCar Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
However, after his condition failed to improve overnight Power was examined once again and diagnosed with mild concussion.
This led to Spanish racer Oriol Servia replacing Power during the morning warm-up session and the subsequent 110-lap race.
Although many are understandably looking at Power’s incident on Friday as the cause for his concussion, his ear accelerometers which provide detailed information regarding any impact on a driver’s head showed no data suggesting Power had sustained injury.
After being diagnosed with mild concussion, Power was entered into the concussion protocol.
Power will be unable to race until cleared by INDYCAR medical officials.
The next IndyCar race will take place on April 2 around the Phoenix International Raceway.
