By Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich Notes from INDYCAR just before the session start: At 11 a.m., the ambient temperature is 72 degrees Fahrenheit with a relative humidity of 84 percent and winds from the north-northwest at 10 mph. Skies are mostly cloudy. The track temperature is 82 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Firestone Racing. Each...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich An early start to the day meant a lot of early arrivals into Gasoline Alley, and therefore a fair bit of tension in the paddock for the final pre-qualifying practice session. The garage opened at 5 a.m. and teams started rolling in not long afterwards. Saturday morning’s practice got...
READ MOREBy Steve Wittich It’s Bump Day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway! Man, it’s early. Tony DiZinno and I left from the Indiana headquarters of TSO, in the northern suburbs of Indianapolis at 5:30 AM and after a stop at Starbucks, we’re ready for a full day of intriguring qualifiyng stories. Here is the current schedule...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich Lots to cover after the last update, and we’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow, so here’s a metric ton of notes to call it a night, and then drink some coffee for an early morning on Saturday. — To put a wrap on Fast Friday, Honda...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich Track activity is done for the day and for the truncated week of practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, of only four days. On a day of limited running compared to a busy first few days, some teams are likely sleeping easier than others heading into what likely will...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich The afternoon lull was broken when some cars took to the track for solo runs. At 2:15 PM, the “Yellow Submarine” of Helio Castroneves took to the track for a mock qualifying run. The 3-time winner put together four super consistent laps of 227.590mph, 227.495mph, 227.578mph, and 227.307mph. Those...
READ MOREAt 2:43 pm James Davison was the first significant contact of the “Month of May.” The Australian was on the third lap of a qualification simulation after turning a lap of 224.405mph when the rear end of the No. 33 Jonathan Byrd’s 502 East Chevrolet stepped out in the middle of Turn 2. The Foyt...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich At 12:18 p.m., Will Power posts the first 229 mph no-tow lap at 229.0374 mph. Just before 12:30 p.m., here are the top 10 no-tow speeds: 12 – 229.037 1 – 228.994 22 – 228.857 18 – 228.332 27 – 227.961 3 – 227.771 6 – 227.721 28 –...
READ MOREBy Tony DiZinno and Steve Wittich Fast Friday began under overcast skies with an air temperature of 66F and track temperature of 76F. Terrific weather for making speed. The wind-sock on the top of the pylon was being pushed almost directly west perpendicular to the two ¼ mile short chutes. The first car on track...
READ MOREChip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing has streamlined its lineup from four cars to two. Its group present at today’s usual Fast Friday press conference was also streamlined from four people down to three, although not by design. Team newcomer Ed Jones was the only one present alongside Ganassi and team managing director Mike Hull....
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