Indianapolis 500: Safety Concerns Surround Race Following Crashes

— -- Four serious crashes in the lead-up to the Indianapolis 500 have brought attention and concern to the level of safety of the drivers heading into Sunday’s race.

The most recent crash occurred Monday when James Hinchcliffe’s car spun hard into the wall before sliding back and nearly flipping over -- an accident blamed on suspension failure.

Hinchcliffe is in stable condition, recovering from surgery following the crash.

Three other incidents involving airborne cars occurred in the days before Hinchcliffe’s crash. Helio Castroneves and Josef Newgarden went airborne in crashes last week that raised concerns about the safety of the new oval aero kits. On Sunday, Ed Carpenter flipped his car on its side in practice leading up to Indy 500 qualifying.

None of those three drivers were seriously injured.

IndyCar Series officials made a last-minute rule change for qualifying in the wake of the three Chevrolet accidents, reducing turbocharger boost to decrease power and removing aerodynamic panels. But even with slower speeds and reduced horsepower, drivers remain uncertain what will happen when 33 cars are running full throttle come Sunday in what is dubbed "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."

Derrick Walker, IndyCar's president of competition and operations, has blamed Castroneves' wreck on an aero balance setting that was pushed too far, Newgarden's on a cut tire and that Carpenter simply had an accident, according to ESPN.com.

Carpenter, the only driver/owner in the series and an Indianapolis Motor Speedway standout, said no one is certain cars won't go airborne this Sunday.

"I think that's a concern for everybody," said Carpenter, who believes IndyCar "at this point, they're doing the right thing. We're trying to understand what's going on."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.