If there was one common trend in the opening day of the Indianapolis 500 Open Test, it’s that experience matters.
The top five drivers on the speed chart Tuesday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway had each made at least 10 starts in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” with 12-time starter Conor Daly leading the way with a best lap of 225.394mph in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet.
“There are several cars that aren’t running their race cars yet,” Daly said.
“It’s just testing; we can’t overreact to test results. But honestly, every time we went out there, we did seem to be pretty quick, which is good. Our mission this month (May) is one day at a time.”
The most experienced driver in the field, four-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, was second at 225.200mph as he prepares for his 26th start, chasing an unprecedented fifth victory.
Another proven performer, two-time winner Takuma Sato, slotted into third at 224.800mph, continuing his strong record at the Brickyard.
Daly, Castroneves and Sato all set their quickest laps in the final 15 minutes during the traditional “Happy Hour,” where cars run in packs and benefit from powerful aerodynamic tow.
“Honestly, we changed pretty much everything but the colour of the car for that last run, so we were not dialled in or optimised at all,” Daly added.
“But this car is fast… hopefully we’ll dial that in tomorrow and get a little more zesty with everyone out there.”
Six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon, a familiar name for Kiwi fans and the 2008 Indy 500 winner, was fourth fastest at 224.564mph for Chip Ganassi Racing, continuing his typically strong and consistent presence at the Speedway.
Scott McLaughlin, who endured heartbreak in last year’s race after crashing on the warm-up lap, bounced back to finish eighth overall with a best speed of 223.687mph as he builds confidence heading into May.
Meanwhile, fellow Kiwi Marcus Armstrong ended the session 12th quickest at 222.433mph, continuing his steady adaptation to oval racing in his sophomore IndyCar campaign.
Rounding out the overall top five on the day was 2016 race winner Alexander Rossi at 224.367mph.
Notably, nearly every driver’s fastest lap came with the benefit of a tow. The standout non-tow performance belonged to Daly’s teammate Jack Harvey, who recorded a best lap of 220.318mph without aerodynamic assistance — an encouraging sign for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.
Four Indianapolis 500 rookies — Jacob Abel, Caio Collet, Dennis Hauger and Mick Schumacher — successfully completed the Rookie Orientation Program, alongside veteran refreshers Ed Carpenter, Castroneves, Harvey and Ryan Hunter-Reay.
“I think it’s obviously the best thing I’ve done in my life,” Collet said. “The first time you’re actually here, you see guys flying by and think, ‘Oh, can I really do that?’”
In total, 32 of the 33 cars completed 2,262 incident-free laps — equivalent to 5,655 miles — in a productive and clean opening day of running.
SEE: Day 1 Test Results | Day 1 No-Tow Results
Practice for the 110th Indianapolis 500 begins Tuesday, May 12 (4:00am Wednesday, May 13 NZST), with Race Day scheduled for Sunday, May 24 (4:30am Monday, May 25 NZST).
Header Image: Penske Entertainment – Chris Jones
