Qualifying order:
The cars early in the draw may have an advantage as the wind is expected to pick up this afternoon. The temperature will be 5-6 degrees warmer by the middle of the order.
There have been few takers in the practice groups so far. Kyle Kaiser is on track. What a great effort by the Juncos crew.
More later.
Above: The Spirit of Indy. Kyle Kaiser consoled r after his crash this morning. Thanks to @Breakinfree086 for sharing the photo.
The Sunday rain contingency plan: The last row shootout will run on the next available track day if the day is rained out. The first three rows will be set by Saturday’s times. No fast Nine Shootout will occur. This would make Saturday a true Pole Day, as it should be.
Just as happy hour began, Graham Rahal brushed the wall in turn two. He returned to the pits and the car went back to the garage to assess the damage. The right side tires had scuff marks on the sidewalls. Graham said in an interview they had lost some speed.
Juncos Racing is hard at work putting a car together. At least 20 crew member are assembling separate parts as they need to be on track for tomorrow morning’s practice.
The speeds as of 5:35:
This morning Team Penske, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and Chip Ganassi Racing owners and drivers addressed the media in separate sessions. The question of guaranteed spots was asked of each owner. Their response:
Roger Penske- “If the people who invest in the sport and qare Building the sport today to where it is, I think we have great momentum from the press, from our TV partners, to commit to the full season, not have an opportunity to race here.. if you’re going to commit and run the whole season, you should have an opportunity to run in this race.”
Bobby Rahal- ” Ithink it’s amazing that we’re in the situation we are now, where we have more than the 33 entries…. personally i think it should be the way it’s always about, that the fastest 33 and that’s it… I think that (gauranteed spots) is loyal to the history of the Speedway and the history of the 500. I think it is the way it should be.”
Chip Ganassi-” My position is it should be the fastest 33. I’m not saying it’s not going to be that. there is a scenario where it won’t be the fastest 33. I just think that’s not right. It should be the fastest 33… If it’s not the fastest 33, then the full season participants should have some guarantee.”
Mike Hull had the most interesting comment of the morning:
“…for this race they ought to give us an extra engine and we should go faster.”
He went on to say that the only way speed come back is for engine power to go up.
Conor Daly set the fastest time of the day with three minutes left. His speed was 231.704. During the press conference he found out he will be the first driver out for qualifying tomorrow. The first hour is key to fast speeds. Those drivers whose turns come from about 12:30 to 5 will have a tough time in the heat of the day. the last 90 minutes should be a real scramble.
Back tomorrow morning to set the stage. I will update after every 15 qualifiers.
Just before noon Kyle Kaiser spun and had hard contact with the thid turn wall. The car spun and rolled partway like Pato O’Ward did yesterday. The I’m pact put a small gouge in the track, which the IMS crew patched.
The car was destroyed. Juncos brought a second tub from their shop on Main Street in Speedway and will rebuild this car, which is primarily used for road courses. Juncos does not have a sponsor for the 500, but Kaiser had enough speed to easily be in the field.
Marco Andretti was the first driver to reach 230 mph, with a lap of 230.851. Three other drivers are also over 230. Conor Daly, Spencer Pigot, and Simon Pagenaud are second through fourth at the moment.
At 2:25, the track went yellow for moisture. The minimum down time will be thirty minutes.
Honda powered cars appear to be better than the Chevys without a tow. Ed Carpenter, however, in a Chevy is first on no tow list.
Pato O’Ward was back on track this morning in acar with the same livery as Max Chilton’s. I’m sure it will be repainted if he makes the race.
I will close with some photos of what was left of Kaiser’s car.
Above: Carlin crew works to get Pato O’Ward’s car ready after his crash. Phot: Kyle McInnes
It’s called Fast Friday and with the added boost the engines get today speeds will definitely be faster than they have been the rest of week. We may get a glimpse of what qualifying will look like tomorrow.
Today will be cloudy with temperatures in the low 80s. Rain is still in the forecast for Sunday, which means tomorrow’s results will stand if Sunday is completely washed out.
This year’s qualifying format is different than last year’s. Tomorrow all 36 cars get a chance to make qualifying runs. The top 30 are locked in the field. On Sunday the top nine qualifiers will have one attempt runs to determine the pole and the order of the first three roles. Cars that qualified 31-36 on Saturday then will each have one attempt to get the final three spots in the field.
I will not rehash my thoughts on this qualifying format here, but I refer you to two previous posts. My feelings haven’t changed on this matter.
https://wordpress.com/post/thepitwindow.blog/8989
https://wordpress.com/posts/thepitwindow.blog?s=The+soul+of+
The speeds from the last three days mean nothing. Thereare some stories to watch closely the next two days.
The rain yesterday kept Fernando Alonso from getting on track with his back up car. Look for a lot of running for McLaren today. They may try out both cars. Alonso had not shown much speed before the crash, How McLaren rebounds from their setback will be intriguing.
I think he just barely squeezes into the field.
Pato O’Ward’s crash yesterday cost him valuable track time. He will be using his converted road course car, which is inherently slower on the oval. O’Ward is another driver who could be one of the six who will need a good run on Sunday to make the race.
Juncos Racing learned at the beginning of the week that their sponsorship fell through. Despite the setback, Kyle Kaiser has kept the car in the top 20 this week. Getting in the field with no outside funding would be a great story. This is the type of drama that makes qualifying compelling.
Both drivers missed the race last year. Both have been running well enough to qualify. Hinchcliffe is in better shape with an established team in Arrow Schmidt Peterson. He has shown resiliency a year after missing the race before. The circumstances aren’t as severe this time, the return would still be a story in perseverance.
Mann is with a new team, Clauson-Marshall Racing, her efforts to race in the 500 may again result in frustration. She works all year to secure funding for a ride and I’m not sure what her future holds should she fail to make the race again.
I see the Fast Nine looking the same as last year- four Penskes, three Carpenter cars, and two others, very possibly Scott Dixon and Sebastien Bourdais again.
Ed Carpenter is my pick for the pole, although I would not be shocked if one of his teammates is fastest.
Takuma Sato is my dark horse for a top nine spot.
As far as who will not make the field, I think Ben Hanley of Dragonspeed will not make the field. He will join Pippa Mann and James Davison.
Back later with a practice update and some interesting comments from this morning’s press conferences.
Above: Willy T. Ribbs celebrates after qualifying for his first 500 in 1991.
By comparison, Breaking speed barriers-at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway were easy to accomplish. Other barriers had been as rigid as the old concrete walls at the Speedway. In 1977 Janet Guthrie became the first woman to qualify for the race. I’ll tell her story next week. The final barrier stood another 14 years.
It was a long road to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Willy T. Ribbs. Ribbs had driven most everything, from SCCA sports cars to NASCAR. Ribbs was the first black driver to drive a Formula 1 car in a test. He first entered the 500 in 1984, but did not appear. In 1985 he came to the track, but withdrew during rookie orientation.
Six years later he was back with Derrick Walker, a Buick powered car, and no sponsor. During the second week of practice leading up to the final qualifying weekend, the team lost four engines. Now, on Bump Day, Ribbs was still not in the field. Sunday got off to an ominous start. A turbocharger failed just before 1 o’clock. After a ninety minute repair the engine was fired again and began to smoke. The engine was blowing oil. The pump had taken on shrapnel from the turbocharger.
By the time Ribbs could get out for practice, it was 3:30. Finally at 5:15 Ribbs rolled off the line for a qualifying run. He posted the fastest time of the day, 217.358 and bumped 1983 race winner Tom Sneva from the field. Willy T. Ribbs was the African American to qualify for the Indianapolis 500.
A story for another time is the history of black drivers attempting to enter the 500.
Unfortunately, his race didn’t last long. Ribbs was out after just five laps with another engine failure, finishing 32nd.
In 1992 Ribbs returned with a somewhat stronger effort. he qualified 30th and finished 21st.
The final Speedway barrier had been broken.
Above: Ed Jones led Day 3 practice with a speed of 227.843. Photo by Kyle McInnes
Rain and lightning shortened practice today. With lightning within eight miles of the track, the yellow flag waved and the session was declared over. The rebuilt McLaren did not get on track. As I type a rain shower is ten minutes away and there are now reports of hail in the area.
The rain means tomorrow the drivers begin with a green track. Speeds will build as the rubber gets built up on the track. With the extra boost allowed for qualifying, speeds should rise quickly.
Ed Jones set the day’s fastest time of 227.843 early and held the top spot the rest of the day.
The rest of the top five:
Takuma Sato 226.699
Zach Veach 226.070
Senastien Bourdais 225.996
Colton Herta 225.458.
Ed Jones talks about his day .
Jones said, “From the get go things have gone very well” at Ed Carpenter Racing. “Ed Carpenter is mostly focused on ovals and it shows,” he added.
In addition to tomorrow’s regular weekly podcast, Pit Lane Parley will have a series of exclusive driver interviews this weekend. Sage Karam, Santino Ferrucci, Ben Hanley, and possibly one other guest will talk with Mike Joachim. Times are not announced, so check their schedule.
Bum p Tales returns tomorrow morning. Look for a qualifying preview on Wildfire Sports tomorrow as well.
Felix Rosenqvis.
t’s car was back on pit road. They are using an asymmetrical front wing setup with the Gurney flap only on the left side.
Carlin could be in some difficulty after Pato O”Ward’s heavy crash at 12:17 this morning. O’Ward was cleared to drive at the infield medical center. I spoke to Trevor Carlin who said they have another chassis. I’m not sure where that is coming from.
O’Ward got a little airborne but didn’t flip over. The holes cut in the floor likely prevented that. He still slid on two wheels before the car stopped upright.
As of 2:30 pm, Ed Jones, Takuma Sato, and Sebastien Bourdais have the day’s top speeds. Jones’ best lap was 227.843. He is also first on the no tow rankings. Spencer Pigot and Ed Carpenter are in the top ten, at 5th and 7th. All three ECR cars have consistently been in the top ten this week.
NBC continues to show clips of really bad crashes. I hope this is not something planned for the broadcast this weekend and Race Day.
The video boards have not been on today. I am trying to discover the reason.
A yellow was thrown at 3:10 for Pippa Mann requesting a two in. The car slowly returned to the pits on its own.
Fernando Alonso should be on track by 4 pm. His repaired or rebuilt back up car is in the gararge area.
Please give a listen to the Pit Lane Parley podcast. They are doing a great job with commentary and special interviews. Their main episode will be up on Friday. Go to piylaneparley.simplecast.com.
Above: Conor Daly (R) and Colton Herta side by side in yesterday’s practice session
Today the focus begins to slowly turn to the coming weekend of qualifying. Two teams, McLaren and the Ganassi car of Felix Rosenqvist, will use back up cars today after yesterday’s accidents. McLaren is also rebuilding the primary car and may run it tomorrow before deciding which to qualify.
Penske continues to lead the speed chart, but I don’t think we know yet what Andretti has. Ed Carpenter Racing has also been consistently in the top 10 and Dale Coyne racing showed some quickness yesterday as well.
Continue reading “Day 3 at IMS-Focus Begins to Turn to Qualifying”
Photo: Felix Rosenqvist at the Indycar Grand Prix. Photo by Kyle McInnes
Felix Rosenqvist spun in turn two at 5:02. His car snapped as it appeared he caught the grass with his left front tire. He backed into the outside wall the went head on into the tire barrier on the inside. His spinning car just missed clipping Will Power and Jack Harvey just missed running into Rosenqvist. He was checked and released from the infield medical center.
After just a few minutes of green flag running, the yellow flew for a track inspection. Another track inspection with seven minutes left, the track closed for the day.
Josef Newgarden’ s earlier time of 228. 856 held as the fastest of the day. Alexander Rossi was 34th quickest but had the fastest no tow speed.
Alonso talked to NBC Sports about his accident.
“It was understeer on the car, and even if I lifted the throttle on the entry of the corner, it was not enough, and I lost completely the front aero. The wall came too close and too quickly. Unfortunately, it happened today. We will lose a little bit of running time again. I’m sorry for the team, but we will learn and hopefully, we will come back stronger tomorrow. I’m disappointed and sad for the team and for the guys. We worked quite a lot on the car and definitely now it’s quite damaged, so I feel sorry for the team and for my mistake. We will learn from this and hopefully tomorrow we’re back on track and back stronger”
McLaren is repairing the primary car and also building the backup car. they will try both tomorrow and decide which car to qualify.
The F1 grid lines are slowly returning as the sealant lightens.
Newgarden said that like last year it is difficult to follow especially in a deep pack of cars. He thinks the race will be similar to last year, but it will depend on the temperature. A cooler day might see better racing than a warm day. Newgarden also noted that the team or other teams as well have not tried all the downforce and aero tools Indycar has made available this year.
Rossi said the team completed their checklist for today and then parked the car. He didn’t seem concerned about his speed ranking today and thought being first on the no tow list was irrelevant.
The Pit Window by Mike Silver 