2-time F1 champ Alonso hints Indy 500 return possible

Fernando Alonso hinted that he could return to race the Indianapolis 500 again in 2019 after he retires from Formula One.

The McLaren driver raced at Indianapolis in 2017. He led 27 laps and was in contention to win until his engine failed in an appearance that made a splash with race fans. He skipped the race this year to be part of the winning team at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The two-time Formula One champion spoke Thursday ahead of this weekend's U.S. Grand Prix. He said racing Indianapolis remained an "attractive" idea but said he's not ready to reveal his 2019 plans yet.

Alonso said any driver from a different series who would consider racing the Indy 500 would have a lot to think about. Testing the car on an oval track wore him out physically, he said.

"They need to commit to the race," Alonso said. "I think if they just want to do a test they will never do the race after testing the car, because it feels quite bad. The car is self-steering to the left, you go on the straights and you are turning right and it feels very weird to drive the car.

"But then in the race it is just a different thing. You wake up your competitive instinct and you forget about all these weird things that those cars have and it's a lot of fun. It's part of history," Alonso said.

Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo suggested he'd rather watch Alonso.

"Ovals creep me out a little bit. I won't lie," Ricciardo said. "It was cool watching Fernando do it."

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — A race car veered off the track during a competition in Sri Lanka on Sunday and rammed into a crowd of spectators and race officials, killing seven people and injuring 20 others, officials said.

Thousands of spectators looked on as the mishap took place during a race in the town of Diyatalawa in the tea-growing central hills, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) east of the capital Colombo.

It wasn't immediately clear what caused the mishap.

Police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa said one of the cars veered off the track and crashed into spectators and officials of the event. Seven people, including four officials, were killed and another 20 were being treated at a hospital, said Thalduwa. He said three of the injured were in critical condition.

Thalduwa said police have launched an investigation into the accident, which was the 17th out of 24 events scheduled. The race was suspended after the accident.

About 45,000 spectators had gathered at the race circuit at a Sri Lankan military academy. The event was organized by the Sri Lankan army and Sri Lanka Automobile Sports.

People attend to the injured after a racing car crashed into the spectators during the Fox Hill Supercross, a motor racing event organized by the Sri Lanka's army, in Diyatalawa, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2024. (AP Photo/STR)

People gather around a car that had crashed into the spectators during the Fox Hill Supercross, a motor racing event organized by the Sri Lanka's army, in Diyatalawa, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2024. (AP Photo/STR)