Despite being the first practice session of the Road America race weekend, many teams were able to build on the test session they completed at the circuit last week. AJ Foyt Racing, Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, ECR and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing had all already logged a full day of testing at Road America.
Alex Palou Fastest on Primary Tires
After a quiet start to the session, Pato O’Ward was the first driver to post a competitive lap, setting a 1:44.3688. That time was already nearly two-tenths of a second faster than last year's pole-winning lap. After 30 minutes of practice, Alex Palou edged ahead by two hundredths of a second and his lap remained at the top of the leaderboard for much of the session.The practice session was interrupted for the first and only time after 48 minutes, when Sting Ray Robb crashed in the final corner. The American ran wide, lost control of his Juncos Hollinger Racing machine and ended up in the tire barriers on the inside of the circuit.
Meyer Shank Racing Claims the Top Spots on Alternate Tires
Due to Road America's length — more than four miles (6.5 kilometers) — the field was not split into two groups at the end of the session and teams bolted on the alternate tires with approximately 15 minutes remaining. With 10 minutes left on the clock, Felix Rosenqvist moved to the top of the timing charts before teammate Marcus Armstrong went another seven hundredths of a second quicker five minutes later.Palou and O’Ward were also on alternate tires at that point, but surprisingly neither driver was able to improve on the lap times they had set on the primary compound. As a result, Armstrong remained the fastest driver of the day.
The top ten featured several unexpected names. Nolan Siegel (fifth), Caio Collet (sixth) and Mick Schumacher (eighth) all impressed with strong laps on the alternate tires. Meanwhile, David Malukas was the highest-placed Team Penske driver in 12th position.
Full results of the 1st free practice session on Road America
PhotographyPenske Entertainment
