Rookie Caio Collet surprisingly posted the fastest time of the second and final test day for the Indy 500. The AJ Foyt Racing driver was the first driver in the morning session to break the 226 mph barrier. No one was able to match his time afterward. Josef Newgarden posted the second-fastest time of the day, ahead of Alex Palou.

The second and final test day began with a delay of one hour and fifteen minutes after rain fell in Indianapolis during the morning. Around 10:00AM local time – when the test was originally scheduled to begin – conditions had already dried up for some time, but the track surface was still wet. The green flag was finally waved at 11:15AM.

Caio Collet becomes first driver to break 226 mph barrier

Conor Daly initially topped the charts in the opening part of the test, but after half an hour Caio Collet surprisingly jumped to the top spot. The rookie did so with an average speed of 226.381 mph, making him the first driver this year to break the 226 mph barrier.

Collet remained in first place through the end of the opening session, ahead of Josef Newgarden and Conor Daly.

Katherine Legge completes refresher program

The break between the two sessions was used by HMD Motorsports for Katherine Legge’s refresher program after clutch issues kept the Brit sidelined on Tuesday. Legge successfully completed the required phases, allowing her to take part in the final part of the test.

Josef Newgarden fastest in afternoon, but slower than Collet

Although drivers had lost valuable track time because of the rain, the second half of the test began with only a few cars on track. It took 45 minutes before traffic picked up, and with one hour and 45 minutes remaining Newgarden posted the first truly quick lap of the session. However, his speed of 225.617 mph was not enough to challenge Collet’s fastest mark from the first session.

The session had to be stopped twice because of unusual situations. First, the yellow flag came out after a fox found its way onto the track. A second caution followed when Jack Harvey spectacularly blew his Chevrolet engine.

The final hour of the day – ‘Happy Hour’ – was fully dedicated to race simulations. For this session, pit lane was adjusted to race conditions, including the opening of the pit entry used during the race. This allowed teams and drivers to prepare as thoroughly as possible for race conditions, including pit stops.

Despite the busy track during the final hour, there were few improvements on the timing sheets because drivers had no fresh sets of Firestone tires remaining. As a result, Newgarden’s fastest time from the afternoon session was never threatened, while rookie Collet held on to the fastest lap of the day.

Full Combined Wednesday Test Results