CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
HY-VEE DOUBLEHEADER WEEKEND
IOWA SPEEDWAY
NEWTON, IOWA
TEAM CHEVY PRACTICE ONE
JULY 12, 2024
SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN SETS THE PACE IN ONLY PRACTICE AT IOWA SPEEDWAY
COMPRESSED SCHEDULE ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY ADDS TO EXCITEMENT OF THE DOUBLEHEADER ON THE FAST SHORT TRACK
- Scott McLaughlin took his NO. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet to the top of the scoring pilon as the 90-minute session, the only practice available to teams for the weekend, came to a close
- McLaughlin’s fastest lap was 17.3134 seconds at 185.891 mph edging close to the standing track record of 17.23 seconds at 186.8 mph set by Helio Castroneves in 2014 driving the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet
- As the session was winding down, McLaughlin gave the highline a try, but ended up spinning down the track out of turn four without any damage to the car
- Last Sunday’s winner at Mid-Ohio, Pato O’Ward driving his familiar No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, was third quickest with a lap of 17.4767 seconds at 184.154 mph
- Team Chevy finished practice with five of the top-10 in the final order
- Prior to the start of the full field practice, INDYCAR split the field in half giving each group 15 minutes to run the high line only in an attempt to make two solid racing lines
- The schedule on Saturday will commence with single car two lap qualifying at 3:45 p.m. ET. Lap one will determine the starting position for Race One, and the second lap will set their starting position for Race Two. The first 250-lap event of the weekend, the Hy-Vee Homefront 250, takes the green flag live on NBC at 8 p.m. ET. Sunday sees the second of the two races, with the Hy-Vee One Step 250, airs live at 12 p.m. ET Sunday on NBC. All practice and qualifying sessions broadcast with Peacock, INDYCAR Radio, and SiriusXM Channel 218.
TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 PRACTICE RESULT:
Pos. Driver
1st Scott McLaughlin (17.3134)
3rd Pato O’Ward (17.4767)
5th Alexander Rossi (17.5119)
7th Agustin Canapino (17.5278)
10th Will Power (17.5965)
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:
“From the start, the car was pretty good off the truck even with the changes to the downforce and to the tire that we have for this race. But ultimately it felt pretty solid. I knew we had pace in it as I was building up to the run. I got a clean enough run so I made the most of it to put up a good lap. Hopefully we get a good place to start. We need to adjust a couple of things for turn four because it easy to get up there in the marbles, but I think is going to prove difficult for everyone. But so far, so good.”
NTT INDYCAR SERIES News Conference
Friday, July 12, 2024
Scott McLaughlin
Press Conference Transcript
Q. Scott McLaughlin, did the wind affect you at all in your spin in four?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: No. It was just pure driver problem. But, yeah, the wind is stronger than we had when we tested here. No, yeah, it wasn’t a major factor today.
Q. (No microphone.)
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I definitely think it’s probably not as useful on an oval as it is on a road course. You still have the ability to use it. We still see a difference when you deploy it in some areas.
I believe people are going to use it in qualifying. People are going to use it in the race. But yeah, it’s certainly a lot easier to charge. Probably not a huge difference from a lap time perspective over 30, 40 laps.
It’s there if we need it, which is fun to use.
Q. Not much turnaround time between a night race tomorrow night and an early start on Sunday. You guys are racers, so you go out there and do what you need to do to win the race. How well-prepared do the teams have to be to have an extra car ready to go in case the Saturday night car gets in a crash?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: It’s certainly a tough schedule going from a night race into a late morning one. The teams have been prepared for it for a long time.
Ultimately, you never want to crash. Obviously, if you do, you have a shunt on Saturday. It puts a little bit of pressure on them. Every team on pit lane has some of the best people in the world. I’m sure it’s easy to put a car going. You don’t want to do it. It’s not easy, but it is what it is.
But yeah, the commitment is there, and they’re ready to go if need be.
Q. Was there any actual tire deg or is it just the layups? Was there legit tire deg?
SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: There’s some tire deg. Not as much as we’ve seen in the past. I think that’s more track specific than tires or whatnot.
Definitely, like Scottie said, I think it sucks a little bit that the repave is not great for us, but it is what it is. Everyone’s got the same track to deal with, so see how we go.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Scott
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