Scott Dixon Leads the Field on First Day of Indy 500 Testing

Scott Dixon set the fastest time during the first day of testing for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver clocked the quickest lap of the day about half an hour before the delayed checkered flag, narrowly edging out Josef Newgarden. Takuma Sato delivered a surprise by finishing third.

The first day of the Open Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway got off to a very rough start. The track experienced technical issues, allowing drivers to complete only installation laps at the scheduled start time. They then had to wait over two and a half hours before the session could officially begin. To make up for the lost time, the test day was extended by an hour, running until 7:00 p.m. local time (1:00 a.m. CET).

When the track was finally opened for veteran practice, it didn’t take long before another delay occurred. Just three laps into his run, Jack Harvey came to a halt on the backstretch due to a malfunctioning hybrid system. Not long after, a second stoppage was triggered when Santino Ferrucci’s car lost power due to a Chevrolet engine failure.

Technical issues also plagued Rinus VeeKay, who remained in the pits for an extended period before finally turning his first timed laps with just an hour left on the clock.

A key goal for many drivers was to get a feel for running the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the hybrid system onboard. After the conclusion of the 2024 IndyCar season, each team was allowed to test the hybrid system on the 2.5-mile oval with one car. However, most drivers didn’t take part in that test, making this Open Test their first real opportunity to run the system.

Alex Palou set the fastest lap during the first portion of the test day — which was limited to veterans — with an average speed of 223.303 mph. His teammate Scott Dixon posted the second-fastest time, followed by Felix Rosenqvist and Josef Newgarden.

Following a two-hour break for the Rookie and Refresher Program, Rosenqvist quickly surpassed Palou’s earlier benchmark. After roughly 45 minutes of running, Newgarden recorded the first lap at an average speed of 224 mph, taking over the top spot from Rosenqvist. With one hour and 45 minutes remaining, Newgarden improved even further, becoming the first driver to break into the 225 mph range.

Newgarden’s fast lap remained atop the leaderboard for much of the day until, with just 30 minutes remaining, Dixon improved by a fraction, setting a best average speed of 225.182 mph.

The only incident of the day occurred just 15 minutes before the end: Graham Rahal clipped the wall in Turn 1 with his right rear wheel. The American was able to make it back to the pits, though he appeared to have sustained suspension damage.

The session was briefly resumed, but no further improvements were made to the leaderboard. Dixon retained the top spot, followed by Newgarden and Sato. Felix Rosenqvist was the fastest driver without a tow, ahead of Palou and Sato.

Testing for the Indy 500 will continue tomorrow. Starting at 9:30 a.m. ET, drivers will have 2.5 hours to run qualifying simulations with added turbo boost—normally reserved for Fast Friday and qualifying sessions. From 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. ET, another practice session will be held using the same boost levels as those used during the race.

View the full results from the first day of testing in Indianapolis