“Tm happy to announce that we will be racing this car next year,” Alex Palou quipped after his first run of the day. Of course, he was joking, but I think he summed up the feeling of most of the paddock. Everyone 0the paddock, the media, the fans- is ready for a new car.

The four-time series champion tested the new car on the second and final day of the ikR-28’s initial test. The day paused for several rain interruptions, but there was a good hour plus of running before the 2 pm hard stop.

“The car feels a lot smoother, a lot more connected, I wouldn’t say easier to drive, but it just feels like you don’t need to fight crazy with the car,” Palou said at the end of the day.

“I don’t know, maybe I’m talking too early, but I think we’re going to break a lot of IndyCar records on all kinds of tracks. So, it just feels like it’s a faster car. It feels like it’s a car that is more capable,” Palou said, echoing Alexander Rossi’s assessment of the car on Saturday.

Mike O’Gara, IndyCar vice president of competition and race engineering, was very happy at the conclusion of the weekend of testing. He said they checked all the boxes they were looking for. The next step is to refine some pieces.

The IR-28 will now rest until after he IndyCar season concludes Labor Day weekend. The first oval test is planned late September. For the oval test, “Everything has to be perfect,” O’Gara said.

Notes

The excitement among the media for the new car was palpable both days.

The huge rear wing looks better when the car is on track. It is less of a distraction in motion.

Questions remain, and the answers are a long way from being answered:

How will the car race?

Will the extra hybrid power allow for different deployment strategies?

What is the expected life span of this car? I will be 80 years old in December, and I hope this isn’t the last new car I see. I understand the plan is to update the car every three years. I want to only see one update before a new car comes online.

It was a thrilling couple of days at IMS, and I’m glad I got to be a part of it. I am anxious to see multiple new cars on track to get a better idea of what the future of IndyCar competition.

Thanks for following along this weekend. next week we will het ready for Portland.