Sebastien Bourdais has ended the opening practice session of the IndyCar Grand Prix of Alabama fastest for KVSH Racing, ahead of British racer Jack Hawksworth and the Andretti Autosport of Carlos Munoz.
The opening session of the weekend took place in dry and sunny conditions, despite the fear of rain later in the day.
Although Bourdais managed to end proceedings ahead of Hawksworth by +0.1263 seconds, the former Champ Car champion initially struggled with brake balance issues.
Ryan Hunter-Reay ended the session fourth fastest behind team-mate Munoz in third, ahead of Takuma Sato, James Hinchcliffe and Graham Rahal.
Championship leader and Long Beach race winner Simon Pagenaud was eighth fastest for Penske, +0.4439 seconds adrift of the benchmark produced by Bourdais.
Luca Filippi and reigning champion Scott Dixon rounded out the top ten, with the likes of Juan Pablo, Will Power and Helio Castroneves electing to complete minimal running and therefore ending the session well outside the top ten.
Conor Daly ended the session as the fastest rookie in 16th position, with fellow rookies Max Chilton and Alexander Rossi in 19th and 20th position.
Meanwhile IndyCar veteran Tony Kanaan ended the session a lowly 21st and last, completing only six laps before a battery issue plagued his #10 Chip Ganassi car.
The 21-car field will return to the picturesque Barber Motorsports Park later in the day, as their preparations for the race on Sunday intensify.
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