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Scott McLaughlin goes into IndyCar's Long Beach Grand Prix on the heels of an infamous scuffle after the last race at the Thermal Club. The Team Penske star locked heads with Devlin DeFrancesco in Thermal over a collision between them before the race started.
McLaughlin had started the race in P25 after a disappointing qualifying session. Behind him in P26 was the No. 30 Honda of DeFrancesco. Before the start flag, he drove into McLaughlin's car, causing both to spin and lose time, for which IndyCar officials gave him a drive-through penalty.
After the race, Scott McLaughlin confronted DeFrancesco for 'driving into him'. The Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver retorted by calling him a "moron" during the heated argument that lasted for over half a minute.
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Ahead of the Long Beach Grand Prix, McLaughlin revealed how he had immediately cleared the air with his rival in Thermal.
"We're good as gold. I just said before (that) I like Dev. I texted him straight after when we were yelling and screaming at each other and said 'Hey man, once you calm down, let's talk before we left home'. So we actually talked straight after the race, super easy... we both looked at the video, he agreed and saw why I was angry and we were good," the No. 3 Chevrolet driver said via FrontStretch on YouTube.
The three-time Supercars champion explained how he held no grudge against DeFrancesco, adding:
"I like Dev and I'm not here to hold grudges. It was just... I'm not afraid telling someone 'That's a bonehead move' and I'm happy to cop it on the chin when I do a bonehead move as well. It's just part of racing. There was just a lot of theatrics and probably wouldn't even be a story if there wasn't a camera there. But that's part of it and it's good for the sport."
Scott McLaughlin had more problems than his pre-race collision at the Thermal Club Grand Prix. His No. 3 Chevrolet suffered an overheating issue on the hybrid system in the latter half of the race, leading to his first DNF of the season.
Devlin DeFrancesco explains his side of the scuffle with Scott McLaughlin
Devlin DeFrancesco returned to IndyCar in 2025 with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing after sitting out the 2024 season. He had a disappointing two-year stint with Andretti Global before that. In the first race of this season at St. Petersburg, he finished in a lowly P22 and performed only slightly better for a P20 finish at the Thermal Club GP.
Ahead of this week's Long Beach Grand Prix, DeFrancesco explained how it was the frustration from the Thermal Club race weekend that led to the heated argument with Scott McLaughlin.
"It's the heat of the moment, right? It was after a tough day and very disappointing after the pace we had. So, you know, this is my life. These guys at RLL, we go and we fight every weekend. This is my life, so I was passionate about it. Scott and I spoke, we've cleared the air and moved on," he told reporter Bob Pockrass.
For Scott McLaughlin, the start of the season has been unfortunate. He grabbed pole position at the season opener in St. Petersburg, only to be put at a strategic disadvantage in the race by a Lap 1 crash in the midfield. He finished in P4. After the Thermal Club DNF, the Team Penske star stands 10th in the championship standings.
