Will Power got his Mid-Ohio race weekend off to a strong start by setting the fastest time in the opening practice session at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The Andretti Global driver was more than a tenth of a second quicker than Kyle Kirkwood during the qualifying simulation. Alex Palou posted the third-fastest time of the day, ahead of Christian Lundgaard.

Slow Start to Practice

The session got off to a relatively slow start after the green flag. That came as no surprise, however, as Andretti Global, Dale Coyne Racing, Ed Carpenter Racing, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Meyer Shank Racing and Team Penske had all tested at the 2.4-mile (3.86 km) circuit just a week earlier.

Pato O’Ward led the opening part of the session before the combined session was red-flagged with 20 minutes remaining after Marcus Armstrong crashed into the tire barriers in the Keyhole. Armstrong, who earlier in the day announced he will remain with Meyer Shank Racing next season, told his team over the radio that something had failed on the car. The replays appeared to show that the right-rear suspension had broken.

Palou Fastest on the Primary Tires

Once the track went back to green, drivers including Scott Dixon, Alex Palou, David Malukas and Scott McLaughlin headed back out. With 11 minutes remaining, Kyle Kirkwood moved to the top of the timing sheets before Palou went even quicker two minutes later. Kirkwood improved his lap once more, but ultimately fell just 0.01 seconds short. O’Ward and Will Power finished third and fourth, respectively, behind Palou and Kirkwood in the combined session.

Following the combined session, the field was split into two groups to complete qualifying simulations with less traffic on track. In the first group, Palou underlined his bid for a sixth consecutive pole by setting the fastest lap, finishing a tenth of a second ahead of Christian Lundgaard, while Nolan Siegel impressed with the third-fastest time in the group.

Power Sets Fastest Time After Grosjean Crash

Romain Grosjean brought out the second red flag of the session in the second group. The Dale Coyne Racing driver suffered too much oversteer in Turn 9, spun into the gravel trap and backed into the tire barriers.

Before Grosjean's incident, both Power and Kirkwood had already gone quicker than Palou's benchmark from the first group. The session resumed with just over five minutes remaining, but there were no major changes at the front. Power therefore ended the day on top of the timing sheets, ahead of Kirkwood and Palou.

Full results of the 1st free practice session on Mid-Ohio