Both Ryan Hunter-Reay and Simon Pagenaud have praised the venue of the inaugural Grand Prix of Boston which will take place later in the year.
The race will take place on a 2.25-mile street course around the South Boston Seaport on September 4, and will comprise the penultimate round of the 2016 season.
With preparations ahead of the new season continuing to gather momentum, both Hunter-Reay and Pagenaud have praised the new layout after visiting the venue during the off-season.
Hunter-Reay in particular is already looking ahead to the inaugural event with great anticipation, with the 2012 champion stating that the addition of both Boston, Road America and Phoenix to the 2016 calendar has certainly added a new level to what is expected to be a thrilling year.
“The three adds that we did have were just fantastic, Boston, Road America and Phoenix. Couldn't have asked for a better addition to the IndyCar schedule,” enthused Hunter-Reay. “The track is amazing.
“I can't figure out how somebody puts on a street race because there's so much logistically that has to go into it. When you see the site undeveloped, roads, city streets, you see where the tunnel is going to be, it's amazing that you can even pull something like that off.
“[There’s] huge potential. The site and where I saw it, how it's going to be, the plans for it, massive potential. I hope it's one of our cornerstone events.”
For Pagenaud the idea of a tunnel is the most alluring aspect of the new track layout, along with the fast corners and wide straights the venue will offer the drivers.
The Team Penske driver also hopes fans will be able to watch the action from within the tunnel and hear the echo of the cars as they race through the section.
“The layout is beautiful,” explained Pagenaud, “It's got some fast corners, some really wide straights, some deep braking.
“Obviously we're going under a tunnel. I think that's great. I hope the fans can go in the tunnel and hear the cars go by. That would be really cool.
“The tunnel part is really nice. Left-handed, going to be really fast. You go and brake for the long straight. It goes around the harbour.”
The race will coincide with the Labour Day weekend celebrations, which should help boost crowd numbers for what should be a thrilling inaugural event.
