IndyCar News: Can Pagenaud ever return to racing?

Simon Pagenaud was so severely injured in an IndyCar race at Mid-Ohio last July, no one knows if he will ever return. He is trying.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

Everyone assumes he received a severe concussion, but there has never been an official word as to what exactly is injured on Pagenaud. Soft tissue head injuries can take a long time to heal.

He recently provided an update on social media about his progress, but again no word as to what his medical issue is.

“2023 wasn’t an easy year for me as most of you will know,” he began in a post entitled “Better times ahead”.

“My racing was cut short on July 1 when I had a big accident during practice at Mid-Ohio. My car suffered a manufacturer brake failure resulting in my leaving the track with several high-speed rolls at 180mph.

Indycar driver Simon Pagenaud is a very lucky man after he walked away from an horrific accident in practice for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio earlier today. Without that Halo there would have been another fatality in racing today pic.twitter.com/RgAo9t5owE

— Mark (@_phantom_1974) July 1, 2023

“The IndyCar safety team did an amazing job to get me out of the car and to look after me in the first hours after the impact, and I will be forever thankful to them.

“Due to the accident, I couldn’t continue my season which meant that I only did eight races in 2023,” said Pagenaud.

“Ever since, I have been concentrating on getting my health back to 100%. For that, I have been working closely with a great team of doctors and I have been progressing every day.

“I don’t know yet if I will be back behind a wheel in 2024 nor if I am ready for it. I want to take things slowly to make sure that when I come back, I am at my very best again.

“For now, I want to thank all of you who have sent messages of support, and of course a big thanks to my family, friends, and team who have been there for me 24/7.

“While I am working out my next steps, I also want to take the opportunity to look back at my career and reminisce with you about past success and special moments. But don’t get me wrong: This is not the end as better times are ahead!

“Have a great 2024 everyone,” concluded Pagenaud.