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[/media-credit]The IZOD IndyCar Series took to the track at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the first time this season in its first of two practice sessions in preparation for the Hondy Indy 200.
The session proved eventful with three short red flag periods and numerous drivers posting times that held them atop the leaderboard throughout the session. The first practice session showed a tightly knit field of drivers, with the 25 car field being separated by only 2.1 seconds.
Josef Newgarden found speed early in the session and posted a 1:08.486, which was good to keep him at the top of the charts for the opening 30 minutes of practice.
After about 40 minutes into the session the red flag came out for a Alex Tagliani going off the course at turn 9. Just 10 minutes later, James Hinchcliffe ventured off the track in turn 10 to bring out another short red flag period. Tagliani was later able to return to the track and post a 1:07.346, a time that was good enough to put him in eighth position. Hinchcliffe will look to find more speed in the second practice session tomorrow morning, posting a 1:07.676, only good enough for 17th.
Takuma Sato was able to head in the right direction with his set up on the #5 Rahal/Letterman entry. Sato led most of the middle portion of the 90 minute session, with a best time of 1:08.233.
With 30 minutes remaining and the session at the beginning of its final stages, Will Power jumped to the top of the leader board with a 1:07.297. As the session drew to a close, the time Power posted remained the fastest of the day until the final minute of the session, when Power bested his own time and improved to a 1:06.863.
Following behind Power was Chip Ganassi’s #9 entry of Scott Dixon, who drove his Target Honda to a 1:07.021. Just two tenths of a second behind Power was Marco Andretti, who posted a 1:07.064, a time good enough for third position. Rounding out the top 5 were Simon Pagenaud and Graham Rahal who set marks of 1:07.106 and 1:07.108, respectively.
Finishing the session in 23rd position was Giorgio Pantano, who is replacing the injured Charlie Kimball this weekend. Pantano, who hasn’t been in an IndyCar yet this season, completed the most laps of any driver in the session and generated a best time of 1:08.075.
Like most tracks this season, the DW12 chassis is proving it has a strong pace. Pole speed last year for the Honda Indy 200 was 119.405 mph. Power’s best lap of the opening session was 121.574 mph. Look for some fast qualifying and race speeds throughout the rest of the weekend.
The drivers will be on track next for the second practice session, 8 – 9 am on August 4th. Later that day, at 11:00 am, qualifying will take place. The green flag for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio will be at 1:00 pm on August 5th.
