Alonso’s flop opens eyes

INDIANAPOLIS » Alexander Rossi had no idea what he was getting into when he moved from Formula One to IndyCar.

Turning left the whole race? Looks easy.

But as Rossi soon found out — and as two-time world champion Fernando Alonso and his McLaren team learned in failing to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 last weekend — getting around Indianapolis Motor Speedway at speeds eclipsing 230 mph is a lot tougher than it looks.

“I didn’t understand what oval racing was. I didn’t understand what IndyCar racing was, because there is no exposure to it in Europe,” said Rossi, an American who moved there as a teenager and made his F1 dreams come true with seven starts during the 2014 and ‘15 seasons.

“So when guys haven’t been a part of it,” Rossi said, “they don’t understand how difficult it is, how unique it is to everything they’ve done. On TV, let’s be honest, it doesn’t look that challenging, so being a European driver, in your mind you’re at the pinnacle of the sport. You think, ‘Of course I can go over there and do that and it wouldn’t be a problem.’”

That inherent arrogance was underscored two years ago, when Alonso showed up at the Indy 500 for the first time. He ran near the front all race, only for his Honda engine to let him down.

Naturally, many F1 drivers were quick to pounce on their rival open-wheel series, claiming it must not be too difficult to win in IndyCar if Alonso could be competitive right out of the gate.

MICHAEL CONROY — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Alexander Rossi listen to the teams’ radio during a break practice for the Indianapolis 500 IndyCar race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 16 in Indianapolis.