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Marsh to Regroup, Rebuild for Indy after CTMP Crash

Marsh Racing vows to be at Indy after heavy practice accident at CTMP…

Photo: John Dagys

Photo: John Dagys

While having been forced to withdraw from today’s Mobil 1 Sportscar Grand Prix due to a heavy accident in practice, Marsh Racing has vowed to be ready for the Brickyard Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in two weeks’ time.

Boris Said escaped serious injuries on Friday after he lost control of his Whelen Corvette DP heading into Turn 1, making hard impact with the barriers. Said was dazed from the shunt and was transported to an area hospital but later released with only a broken rib.

“He doesn’t remember [the accident] at all,” team owner Ted Marsh told Sportscar365. “He didn’t remember going off track.

“When he hit, he didn’t open the door immediately, which made me nervous and he wouldn’t talk to me on the radio. I was in Turn 1 trying to talk to him and there was no response.

“The next thing I know, I saw the corner workers come over and they started to open the door and Boris then opened the door. He pushed it open and then stood up and walked to the ambulance.

“When he came here [yesterday] he was fine, just a little sore.”

While the car didn’t sustain chassis damage, Marsh said the impact broke the engine mount, which then buckled into the firewall, where the fuel cell is located. A seat mount also broke, while the steering wheel was bent.

However, no safety devices failed during the accident.

Marsh said a number of items, including the Hendrick-built seat, steering wheel, seat belts and steering rack, will be taken to NASCAR’s Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C., where it will undergo further analysis.

Potential complications with Canadian border customs dashed considerations of taking the entire car to the R&D facility, he said.

The team plans to rebuild the car, recently purchased from 8Star Motorsports, for Indy, although it’s unclear if Said will race, due to his injuries.

Marsh said Guy Cosmo, who raced for the team at Sebring and Watkins Glen, could fill in for him alongside full-season driver Eric Curran, although no decision has been made.

While having gotten off to a challenging start in the team’s first year of Prototype racing, Marsh is confident they’ll turn the corner.

“We just have to keep plugging away and get as close as we can,” Marsh said. “We knew [it was going to be a challenge] going into it. A lot of our challenges have been on the communication side of it.

“This is a new experience for the drivers, as well as the crew guys. It takes time to get that worked out. We’re getting there and hopefully we’ll be there before the years’ out.”

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John

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