Australia's Will Power has slammed the decision to contest the Indycar race in Alabama on a "very dangerous", rain-soaked track after he crashed minutes before it was halted and suspended for a day.
The race was called off after 44 caution-interrupted minutes - before it reached the halfway point and became official - as heavy rain severely reduced visibility and caused some cars to aquaplane.
Officials said the race at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham would be completed on Monday and they impounded Power's race car so his team could not do repairs overnight although he can resume the race.
Power, a two-time winner of the road circuit race, started second on the grid but spun out on the first turn of lap 17 and slammed into the inside wall four laps after racing resumed following an earlier crash.
Power said he could not "believe they went green" with that much standing water on the track.
I couldn't see a thing," said Power. "I just aquaplaned.
"It's very disappointing but, to me, very dangerous.
"I don't know what you do in that situation. If you back off someone will hit you from behind.
"It was just a really difficult situation to be put in."
Power's Penske teammate Josef Newgarden, the pole starter, applauded IndyCar's decision not to risk 16 more minutes to make the race official even though he could have been the biggest beneficiary.
He will remain up front on Monday for the completion after leading all the first 22 laps.
"I was calling for us not to run and I was in the easiest situation," Newgarden said. "I was leading the race, had the best viewpoint. We do another (16) minutes under caution and we call the thing halfway from a time standpoint, we pick up the win.
"It's more advantageous for us to get it in, but I didn't want to do that. I didn't think conditions were right."
Newgarden felt for Power.
"It just intensified to the point where you're starting to get a situation where it's going to take it out of the drivers' hands," Newgarden said.
"What happened with Will was something I don't think was necessarily a driver error. I don't know how anyone can drive through hydroplane situations like that on the front straightaway.
"I think you would have had that for the rest of the track, too. Just a tough situation."
