IndyCar Series officials have no plans to revoke Milka Duno’s driving license despite a plea from veteran driver Paul Tracy.
The subject came up after Duno struggled through last weekend’s event at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. Tracy expressed his displeasure with Duno, in her third season in the series, in a Web site blog.
Brian Barnhart acknowledged Duno did not have one of her better events at Mid-Ohio, and he sent league driver coach Al Unser Jr. to speak to her. Unser stressed keeping a respectable pace and maintaining a consistent driving line.
Duno, who insisted her car wasn’t performing up to its capability, got caught in a bad situation on lap 37 of the Honda Indy 200 when Scott Dixon and Justin Wilson caught her approaching turn four as they battled for the lead.
Dixon seemed to have Wilson passed anyway, but the presence of Duno made it awkward. Wilson had to move farther to the left than he wanted, and he lost considerable ground to Dixon, who went on to win the race.
Duno did not give an explanation for the incident when contacted in California, where she will test today and Thursday at Infineon Raceway, site of an Aug. 23 race. But she said her gearbox had an electrical problem that made shifting gears difficult.
“The most I could do was keep the car on the track,” she said. “It was a nightmare for me.”
Duno finished last in the 21-car field.
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