Pato O’Ward took the top spot on the timing charts for Carb Day, the final practice session leading up to the Indianapolis 500. The young Mexican driver averaged 225.355 MPH in his Arrow McLaren SP Chevy over the course of his fastest lap, taking advantage of a tow from cars ahead of him.
Arrow McLaren SP looked speedy throughout today’s final practice session, with Oliver Askew also turning in the fifth fastest speed on the day. Fernando Alonso was a bit further down the order in 23rd, but reported that his car felt good in traffic.
Today’s two-hour practice session allowed the teams to fine-tune their setups for race day, and also practice full pit stops under the clear blue Indiana skies.
Sage Karam was the only driver to get into the wall today, but luckily he only tapped the outside wall and was able to continue with no damage to his #24 Dreyer and Reinbold Racing Chevrolet.
Andretti Autosport had been the dominant force throughout the first part of the “Month of August,” and showed they still have good pace by placing two cars in the top ten. Although not everyone in the large team was happy with their cars today.
Polesitter Marco Andretti had a bit of trouble with the balance of his #98 Andretti Autosport Honda and ended the day in 28th position, but was still able to complete 70 laps to nail down the setup.
Another Andretti Autosport driver Colton Herta was also not happy with the handling of his car out on track, commenting at one point “Something’s wrong with this thing. We’re so slow,” over the radio.
Chip Ganassi Racing looked on form as well, with Scott Dixon posting the second fastest time of the day, and two of the team’s drivers posting a top ten speed around the 2.5-mile oval.
Team Penske showed some improvement on their poor form throughout the past two weeks, with Josef Newgarden earning seventh on the timing board. Overall though, it just does not look like the team’s year to take victory at the track Roger Penske recently acquired.
The 104th running of the Indianapolis 500 will run behind closed doors this Sunday, August 23. The pre-race festivities start around 13:00 EDT (18:00 BST) and the green flag will fly at 14:30 EDT (19:30 BST).
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