During a practice run on the 11-corner, 2.1-mile temporary street circuit in Nashville, Will Power delivered the quickest lap time of 1m16.4042s before slamming into a wall at Turn 1 and concluding his session.
Following an earlier rain shower that had affected the Indy NXT practice, the track was completely dry for the 75-minute practice session.
Early speed was set by Chip Ganassi Racing’s rookie Marcus Armstrong with 1m18.2776s, slightly ahead of Toronto champion Christian Lundgaard from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Lundgaard later improved his time to 1m18.009s, surpassing Romain Grosjean from Andretti Autosport by 0.02s to claim P1.
Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, despite an initial off-track excursion at Turn 9, rebounded to claim the lead at the session’s midpoint with a time of 1m17.4437s. Series leader Alex Palou, from Ganassi, then seized the top spot with 1m16.9063s, slightly quicker than Colton Herta from Andretti.
Scott McLaughlin from Team Penske was the third-fastest on primary tires, surpassing Scott Dixon and Armstrong, his teammate at Ganassi.
In the final 15 minutes, teams switched to the green-sidewalled alternative tires after completing race-run simulations on primary tires.
Palou clocked 1m16.6494s to widen his lead, until Power toppled him with 1m16.4042s. Alexander Rossi from McLaren placed third just before a red flag was raised due to Callum Ilott from Juncos Hollinger Racing being stuck in the Turn 11 run-off.
The practice restarted but was soon halted again as Power collided with the wall at Turn 1, resulting in an awkward reentry, while Benjamin Pedersen stalled at Turn 11. Power regretfully commented, “I just locked-up a little bit on the way in, thought I was going to make it. Not ideal.”
O’Ward finished fourth, followed by Lundgaard, Herta, David Malukas from Dale Coyne Racing, Grosjean, McLaughlin, and Dixon.
Linus Lundqvist, a newcomer to the series racing for Meyer Shank Racing and stepping in for the injured Simon Pagenaud, remarkably finished 11th.
Others who had off-track incidents at Turn 9 included Armstrong, Rossi, and Jack Harvey from Rahal, while McLaughlin experienced an issue causing him to halt at Turn 10. Marcus Ericsson also came to a stop at Turn 4 and struggled to finish with the 25th fastest time, despite being the inaugural race winner at this circuit.
Final times and ranks for the practice session are as follows:
- Will Power (Dallara/Chevrolet) – 1’16.4042 (20 Laps)
- Alex Palou (Dallara/Honda) – 1’16.6494 (+0.2452) (20 Laps)
- Alexander Rossi (Dallara/Chevrolet) – 1’16.7192 (+0.3150) (18 Laps)
- Patricio O’Ward (Dallara/Chevrolet) – 1’16.7778 (+0.3736) (16 Laps)
- C. Lundgaard (Dallara/Honda) – 1’16.9262 (+0.5220) (27 Laps)
- Colton Herta (Dallara/Honda) – 1’16.9698 (+0.5656) (16 Laps)
- David Malukas (Dallara/Honda) – 1’17.1536 (+0.7494) (17 Laps)
- Romain Grosjean (Dallara/Honda) – 1’17.1793 (+0.7751) (23 Laps)
- Scott McLaughlin (Dallara/Chevrolet) – 1’17.2800 (+0.8758) (17 Laps)
- Scott Dixon (Dallara/Honda) – 1’17.2876 (+0.8834) (15 Laps)
- Linus Lundqvist (Dallara/Honda) – 1’17.3524 (+0.9482) (30 Laps)
- Marcus Armstrong (Dallara/Honda) – 1’17.4024 (+0.9982) (24 Laps)
(The rest of the list goes on…)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about IndyCar Nashville Practice
Who was the fastest in the IndyCar Nashville practice?
Will Power was the fastest during the IndyCar Nashville practice, clocking a lap time of 1m16.4042s.
What happened to Will Power during the practice session?
Will Power crashed into a wall at Turn 1 during the IndyCar Nashville practice, ending his session prematurely.
Who set the early pace during the practice session?
The early pace during the practice session was set by Marcus Armstrong from Chip Ganassi Racing.
Who was the top performer from Andretti Autosport?
Romain Grosjean was the top performer from Andretti Autosport, achieving a lap time that briefly placed him in the P1 position.
Who filled in for Simon Pagenaud from Meyer Shank Racing and how did they perform?
Linus Lundqvist filled in for Simon Pagenaud from Meyer Shank Racing and he delivered a remarkable performance, finishing 11th during the practice session.
Who was the third fastest on primary tires?
Scott McLaughlin from Team Penske was the third fastest on primary tires during the practice session.
What issues occurred during the session?
The session witnessed multiple incidents including drivers such as Power, Callum Ilott, and Benjamin Pedersen experiencing issues or crashes. There were also moments causing other drivers like Scott McLaughlin and Marcus Ericsson to halt their runs.
More about IndyCar Nashville Practice
- IndyCar Series Official Website
- Will Power’s Official Profile
- Chip Ganassi Racing Team Website
- Andretti Autosport Official Website
- Team Penske Official Website
- Meyer Shank Racing Official Website
- Nashville Street Circuit Information
5 comments
Wow, Power was really flying out there! sad to see him crash though, hope the car’s alright for the actual race.
That’s racing for ya, fast one moment and in the wall the next… Can’t wait for the real action to start!
Palou keeps impressing me… he’s gonna be a legend, mark my words.
Nashville’s street circuit is quite a challenge, huh? Props to Lundqvist for doing so well on his debut!
Can’t believe Ericsson’s bad luck after winning here the first time. hope he bounces back in the race.