INDIANAPOLIS -- Felipe Giaffone's late bump of rookie Arie Luyendyk Jr. rekindled memories of a Victory Lane altercation between Luyendyk's father, Arie Sr., and car owner A.J. Foyt eight years ago.
Foyt drivers Billy Boat and Davey Hamilton were initially listed as finishing 1-2 in a race at Texas in 1997. The elder Luyendyk was listed third, but he was convinced that he had won and charged into the Victory Lane celebration, where Foyt struck him twice in the back of the head.
Foyt then wrapped his hands around Luyendyk's head, took two steps and shoved him to the ground.
Luyendyk was later declared the winner after race officials determined that a computerized scoring system had malfunctioned, and Foyt apologized for the attack.
Still, the Indy Racing League fined Foyt $20,000 and Arie Sr. $14,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct.
On Sunday, Foyt, who already had son Larry and grandson A.J. IV in the Indianapolis 500 field, put Giaffone in a third car for practice with just over two hours left for qualifications for the May 29 race. At the time, the younger Luyendyk, a 23-year-old rookie, had the slowest car in the field at 215.039 mph.
Then with less than 20 minutes to go, Giaffone qualified at 217.645, bumping Luyendyk out of the lineup. Luyendyk made it onto the track again just before the qualifications ended, but couldn't bump his way back into the field. He managed a top lap of just over 214 mph and an average of 210.351.
Foyt said there was no feud with the Luyendyks.
"All these idiots trying to say there's a grudge between me and you ... Your son is a great driver," he told Arie Sr. in the pits after qualifications ended.
Luyendyk said his relationship with Foyt has been good since the confrontation in Texas.
"We didn't know they were going to try, but I had a feeling somebody might pull out a car (to qualify)," the two-time Indy winner said. "Foyt's gone through bump day with various other drivers and put these deals together at the last moment."
The younger Luyendyk did not complete his rookie test until Saturday.
"He's a great, young driver," Foyt said. "You're going to hear a lot more from him. This is just one of those things that happen. I know he feels bad, but he's a super young kid."
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