The NTT IndyCar Series held the first practice session of the Barber Motorsports Park weekend on Friday, with 27 drivers turning laps on the road course commonly described as a roller coaster.
Amid heaps of controversy surround his and his team’s illegal use of Push to Pass in St. Petersburg, Josef Newgarden showed that he can put all that behind him as quickly as anyone.
The veteran set the fastest time of the session, completing a lap of the 2.38-mile course in 1:06.7045 in his #2 Team Penske Chevy.
His lap was 0.08 seconds quicker than Pato O’Ward’s fastest time, with the popular Mexican driver finishing second on the day.
Newgarden was admittedly still a bit distracted at the start of the session, with the press conference explaining his disqualification penalty taking place only a couple hours before he climbed behind the wheel.
He spun once at beginning of his run, bringing out a short red flag and ruining a set of tires in the process.
He quickly found his focus again, as the two-time champion is known to do, and rocketed to the top of the timesheets with his next set of tires.
Newgarden’s Team Penske team-mate Will Power finished the session in third place, completing a Chevrolet-powered trio at the head of the field.
Colton Herta and Christian Lundgaard rounded out the top five, giving Honda representation at the top of the charts as well.
Newgarden was not the only driver to take a trip through the grass, with a few others pushing over the limit on the demanding track.
Agustin Canapino brought out a red flag for his spin, but Felix Rosenqvist and Alexander Rossi were able to drive away from their mistakes with only a lost lap as the penalty.
Luca Ghiotto, who turned his first ever laps in an IndyCar during the session, was the slowest driver of the afternoon. He was very close to Sting Ray Robb, however, and was very competitive considering his situation.
Drivers will be back on track Saturday morning for a second practice session, which leads into qualifying at 2:30PM central time.
