Alex Palou topped IndyCar’s Friday practice session with a time of 1:10.8839 around Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course.
The points leader saved his fast laps until the end of the session, when he put on the softer red-walled tires and proceeded to drive the 2.44-mile course faster than the rest of the large 28-car field.
Ending the session in second was Rinus VeeKay, who is looking to back up his maiden victory the last time IndyCar drove this course with another top finish.
The Ed Carpenter Racing driver led much of Friday’s session, only losing out to Palou by 0.02 seconds at the end.
Pato O’Ward took the third spot on the charts, starting off his weekend well after a difficult time last week on the streets of Nashville.
Home sweet home
Even though it is on the road course and not the infamous 2.5-mile oval, this weekend’s race represents a return to home for the series.
Indianapolis, and IMS in particular, is entwined deeply with IndyCar, and any racing run at the track draws attention from fans and teams alike.
With the series visiting multiple times per season lately, drivers have become intimately familiar with the track.
This visit, in particular, gives drivers like Romain Grosjean and Jimmie Johnson and chance to race at a track that they already know, dramatically cutting down the learning curve they have been fighting each weekend.
Having a baseline starting point when there is a condensed weekend format and very limited running helps immensely and allows for the time to fine tune their approach.
New drivers and new teams
Not everyone racing this weekend had the opportunity to race this track before, however, as there are a couple new faces in the paddock.
One of the most impressive runners of the day was Christian Lundgaard, who put the #45 RLLR machine into seventh and was second on the timesheets at one point.
Other than one test day earlier in the week, today’s practice session was the first time he had been behind the wheel of an IndyCar at all.
The Alpine junior and F2 driver showed in just one short hour that he has the skills to hold his own among a very deep field of talent.
Also making its debut was the Top Gun Racing team, which missed out on qualifying for the Indy 500 earlier this year.
The team regrouped and put together a full effort this weekend, with RC Enerson piloting the #75 Chevy into the 22nd position.
With only one practice session on the schedule, the next time the drivers see the track will be for knockout qualifying in just a couple hours’ time.
