Just five days after the opening round of the 2026 IndyCar season, drivers and teams gathered at Phoenix Raceway for the first oval round of the year.
25 cars hit the track early Friday morning for the opening practice session, and the first 10 minutes were filled with drivers completing slow installation laps to check all systems.
Speeds picked up quickly, however, and by time all 60 minutes were complete David Malukas was on top of the timesheets.
Malukas completed a lap of the 1-mile oval in 20.5005 seconds at 175.605 MPH.
Pato O’Ward was second quick, although he was below the magical 175 MPH barrier, with Josef Newgarden setting the third best time.
Fourth quick was Christian Rasmussen in his Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, and the first Honda powered time was Will Power in fifth with Andretti Global.
In all, eight of the top 10 times were set by Chevy-powered drivers, with the American engine supplier appearing set to continue what has been a long-running domination on short ovals.
IndyCar has not been to Phoenix Raceway since 2018, when Josef Newgarden won the race while defending his first series championship.
The track’s facilities have changed considerably since then, including the starting line switching to the other end of the track.
Part of Friday’s running was dedicated to committing the new turn numbers to memory, as well as finding a comfortable line for getting on and off pit road.
What’s old is new
Because a full field test two weeks ago is the only running teams have had on the oval in eight years, a lot of setup work was being done throughout practice.
With cars travelling over 175 MPH with different aerodynamics than before, the balance of the cars was paramount to avoid damaging consequences.
The largest incident of the morning came when Felix Rosenqvist’s #60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda broke loose in the middle of Turns 3 and 4.
His car spun around and backed into the SAFER barrier hard, destroying the rear suspension and much of the left sidepod.
Rosenqvist climbed from the car, but left his crew with a lot of work to do before qualifying in less than four hours’ time.
“I just lost it in Turn 2 on exit,” said Rosenqvist talking to Fox Sports. “Got a little loose in the middle, kind of recovered, then it snapped again and I just couldn’t catch it. Super bummed.
“Very early in the practice, still kinda getting up to speed. Tough one to save. Big hit. I hope we can get it together.
“Super bummed for everyone in the team. Car felt pretty good until it became a little loose. See what we can do from here.”
Other drivers were seen correcting for oversteer and lifting the throttle as well, though all were able to keep their cars pointing the right direction.
Drivers will be back on track at noon local time for single-run qualifying to set the grid for Saturday’s race.
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