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The team was accused of stuffing and smoothing the seams of the rear attenuator, a part that is standard for all teams and therefore cannot be modified.

The new 0.6-mile route replaces one general traffic lane of West Marginal Way Southwest with waist-high concrete dividers for the two-way bike lane, along with yellow-and-black steel attenuators that prevent drivers from impaling their cars.

The race ended under a caution that started with five laps left as Sato’s teammate, Spencer Pigot, crashed hard in turn four and destroyed the attenuator at the end of the pit row wall.

After a Toyota Prius crashed into it two months earlier, the length of the attenuator was shortened, offering less protection against the three-foot-tall concrete median wall behind it.

The attenuator is designed to absorb crash forces before a vehicle hits a concrete median barrier.