Hamilton's former physio Cullen on the podium in Indycar

Armstrong earns his first podium in Detroit

After retiring with an engine issue in the icon Indy 500, New Zealander Armstrong was able to earn his first podium of his Indycar career with a fantastic drive at the Detroit Grand Prix. In what was a hectic race, the 23-year-old came from 20th on the grid to finish in P3. After the race, Armstrong spoke about the work he has done with Cullen and said that "having her on board is a source of inspiration and guidance and motivation," he told the Associated Press. Just like when Cullen worked with Hamilton, Armstrong is enjoying his racing much more, and the results are starting to come through.

Who is Angela Cullen?

Anglea Cullen was born in New Zealand, and while now she is a physiotherapist, she used to be a former hockey player, playing at an international level for New Zealand. She also worked as a physio at the English Institute of Sport in London, supporting the British Olympic team in athletics, guiding the 4x100m relay team to a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. 

However, Cullen is most notably known for being the physiotherapist for Lewis Hamilton. She worked for the German team from 2015 to March 2023, and the seven-time World Champion was always very vocal about the help and support from Cullen during their time working together. She originally joined Hintsa Performance company in 2015, but after the death of Aki Hintsa, a mentor to Hamilton, she became Hamilton's physiotherapist and assistant in 2016. She stayed in that role and guided Hamilton to five of his world titles until she moved on in March 2023.

After some time away from the racetrack, she moved from F1 to Indycar and is now part of fellow New Zealander Armstrong's team after being spotted in his pit box early in the season.

Who is Marcus Armstrong?

23-year-old Marcus Armstrong currently races for Chip Ganassi Racing in Indycar. The New Zealander competed in Formula 2 between 2020 and 2022, and he was also the runner-up in the 2019 Formula 3 championship. He was a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy between 2017 and 2021.

After a successful F3 season in 2019, Armstrong made the move to F2 and drove for ART Grand Prix. However, a difficult season meant he only finished in 13th. He moved to DAMS for the following season but finished in 13th once again. In 2022, it was a third 13th finish in a row in F2, this time for Hitech Grand Prix. After his F2 stint, a move to Indycar became available, which Armstrong took.

After running in 18 races over two seasons, the 23-year-old took his first podium in Detroit, and with Cullen in his corner helping him through his second Indycar season, he will be hoping for more success.