Simon Pagenaud has set the pace after the opening practice session ahead of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at the Barber Motorsports Park.
After proceedings at the picturesque circuit were delayed by an hour due to necessary repairs to an ARMCO barrier, the entire field were understandably quick to begin their preparations for the weekend ahead.
Pagenaud eventually ended the session ahead of Penske team-mate’s Josef Newgarden and Will Power, the latter completing his fastest time in the final seconds of the session.
Helio Castroneves was forced to settle for P4 after Power’s late improvement, with Chevrolet locking out the top four positions.
After a strong start to the season for Honda, the Chevrolet-powered teams will be naturally eager to return to the top come race day.
Reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Alexander Rossi was the highest classified Honda-powered driver in fifth position, with the former Formula 1 racer still hunting for his second race victory in IndyCar.
Ryan Hunter-Reay came home P6 for Andretti Autosport, just ahead of Graham Rahal.
Long Beach race winner James Hinchcliffe was eighth for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, ending the session ahead of championship leader Sebastien Bourdais.
The Frenchman, who sits 19 points clear of Hinchcliffe in the drivers’ championship, created the only red flag delay in comical fashion after he ran wide at Turn 1 and collected an advertising board.
After stopping to allow the Holmatro safety team to remove the advertising board, Bourdais managed to limp back to the pits.
Four-time champion Scott Dixon rounded out the top ten for Chip Ganassi Racing, after a quiet start to the weekend.
The Barber Motorsports Park is one of the few circuits Dixon is yet to win at on the IndyCar calendar, and he will be looking to improve as the weekend continues in a bid to be able to fight for victory.
Mikhail Aleshin finished just outside the top ten in P11, after initially producing the benchmark during the early stages of the session before a spin at Turn 2.
Meanwhile rookie Zach Veach ended the session 21st and last, over a second behind Max Chilton in P20.
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