Sebastian Saavedra: 'I was super lucky' in Indy 500 crash

Sebastian Saavedra said he suffered a dislocated right foot in Sunday's Indianapolis 500, but he acknowledged the injuries in the Turn 4 crash could have been worse had Stefano Coletti not veered slightly to the left prior to impact.

The nose of Coletti's car hit more of Saavedra's left front wheel. Another couple of feet to the right and the impact would have been at the driver's compartment.

"Oh, dude, it would have been a different story," Saavedra told The Indianapolis Star on Monday.

Saavedra said his feet got trapped behind the pedals, requiring extrication assistance. His boots had to be cut off. Worse, the significant swelling likely will keep him from returning to Ganassi Racing's No. 8 car for this weekend's doubleheader in Detroit.

"I think that's out of the equation," Saavedra said.

The crash started when Saavedra and Jack Hawksworth made contact. Saavedra was fighting to keep the car off the outside wall when Coletti arrived on the scene. After the second impact, Saavedra lost orientation until just before hitting the inside wall with a damaged car.

"I had no idea where I was, but then I saw the inside wall coming and I moved my steering wheel," he said. "The car bounced off (the wall) sideways."

Saavedra believes he's "super lucky" to be planning for a return to the IndyCar Series.

"I'll be back dancing in no time," he said.

Follow Curt Cavin on Twitter: @curtcavin



