"It was a good run for what we had," the Kiwi confessed, "Thest when Charlie Kimball had spun out at the exit of Turn 2 right in front of us. I was setting up to pass him, and I really didn't have anywhere to go and clipped him with the right front and tore that corner off, and, unfortunately, we damaged the undertray. Unfortunately, because we missed 50 or 60 crucial laps from that first session, we were just behind the eight-ball."

The 16-car field is the smallest of the field so far with several names joining Jay Howard on the sidelines, including Ana Beatriz, following her Indianapolis crash.

Meanwhile, Firestone Indy Lights officials have penalised the #36 Genoa entry - also not racing this weekend - 20 entrant points and fined the team an undisclosed amount for a technical violation of rule 13.11 (J) regarding oil supply found during the recent event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.