Wickens: "It's time to start giving back a little more instead of taking crap from people"

Robert Wickens says that his battle with Simon Pagenaud in Toronto convinced him that he needs to be more assertive with his rivals going forward.

The SPM rookie skirmished with his Team Penske counterpart through the final phase of the Toronto race, ultimately finishing third behind the Frenchman. At the time, he laughed the battle off, albeit with the caveat that “if one of us didn't finish, I think there would be very different feelings."

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In Mid-Ohio though, Wickens cited the experience as a lesson learned about where the draw the line in the heat of battle.

“I think I'm learning,” he said. “I was a believer in giving everyone the same respect as they gave you. I'm learning next time around if Simon is on the other side of me, I can do the same thing he did to me. That was, I guess, a lesson.

“I think there's give-and-take in every category, every track. I think I'm finding my seat pretty well. I think it's time I start giving back a little more instead of taking crap from people.”