"That will bite": Marco Andretti reacts after Devlin DeFrancesco's incident with Scott McLaughlin in Iowa

Marco Andretti has weighed in on the incident involving Scott McLaughlin and Devlin DeFrancesco at the Iowa Speedway. The 38-year-old took to social media to detail his frustration with the manner of driving by DeFrancesco during the incident.

McLaughlin saw his race brought to a premature end by DeFrancesco with barely a lap completed. The Team Penske driver, who started the race at the back of the grid, was clattered into by the Canadian as he lost control of his car shortly after taking the green flag.

Marco Andretti, who appeared far from pleased with how DeFrancesco handled the wheel of his Rahal Letterman Lanigan car during the incident, was quick to take to X to express his frustration.

“Frustrating to watch guys opening their hands with someone sitting outside of them. That will bite eventually,” Andretti wrote on X.

Scott McLaughlin, who had already endured an incident-plagued race weekend in Iowa, also appeared far from pleased with the crash, as he explained how difficult it was to avoid the contact during his interaction with the media.

While both Scott McLaughlin and Devlin DeFrancesco saw their races at the Corn Country event end on the first lap, championship leader Alex Palou would go on to clinch victory on the day. The Spanish driver converted his pole position start into a win at the oval course.

How Scott McLaughlin reacted following his Iowa crash

Scott McLaughlin appeared to toe the line of Marco Andretti as he aired his frustration about the incident during his interaction with the media. The 32-year-old dubbed the incident a “bummer” to his start in the oval race.

The New Zealand driver, who had completed a masterful recovery in the first race of the Iowa event, was aiming for a similar outing during the second instalment of the double-header. However, things would play out far from his desired script courtesy of the contact with Devlin DeFrancesco.

Taking to the media to detail his thoughts on the incident, Scott McLaughlin expressed his frustration.

“I was committed to the high and was just hoping he wouldn’t slide up, and then he slid up right at the end there and just tapped me. Yeah, it’s a little bummer because I had a pretty decent start and I was going okay. Story of our year.”

The incident indeed appeared to be a reflection of the Penske driver’s 2025 campaign so far, particularly around oval courses. Scott McLaughlin witnessed his Indy 500 weekend marred by multiple crashes, including one on the warm-up lap. At the Bommarito 500 Grand Prix, the 32-year-old was forced to retire due to mechanical failure. McLaughlin again suffered two separate crashes at the Iowa double-header, marking the continuation of his torrid run on ovals.

The Penske driver will, however, now shift his focus to the upcoming race in Ontario, as the IndyCar Series heads to the streets of the Canadian province for the Indy Toronto event.

Edited by Rupesh