The chief steward for the Indianapolis 500...

The chief steward for the Indianapolis 500 said he spoke with Mario Andretti about the driver’s stalled car and accepted his version of what occurred late in Sunday’s race.

“He told me he didn’t (intentionally) interfere with the race, and I accepted it,” Tom Binford said.

Andretti blew an engine and said he called for the yellow flag because he couldn’t make it to the pits.

News photographers and spectators who were monitoring scanner radios during the race said they heard Andretti ask his crew whether they needed a yellow caution flag, supposedly to give Michael Andretti, his son and teammate, a better chance to catch Rick Mears in the final laps.

Mears took the lead from Michael Andretti on the 188th lap of the 200-lap race. Moments later, Mario Andretti stopped on the track near the entrance to the pits, forcing the caution period. Although the gap was closed under the flag, Mears stayed in front and beat the younger Andretti to the finish by 3.1 seconds.