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Fox Sports
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Josef Newgarden Takes Top Spot in Final Indianapolis 500 Practice
INDYCAR Josef Newgarden is aiming to write two chapters of history Sunday in the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, and if his performance in Miller Lite Carb Day final practice is any indication, he just may have the car to do it. Newgarden led the final practice for 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing' with a top lap of 225.687 mph in the No. 2 Shell V-Power NiTRO+ Team Penske Chevrolet. Newgarden is trying to become the first driver to win three consecutive Indianapolis 500s, and he'll need to do it from the deepest starting spot in the field of any '500' winner ever. SEE: Practice Results Two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Newgarden is starting the race in the 32nd position in the 33-car field after he and Team Penske teammate Will Power were moved to the rear of the field Monday due to an attenuator on their respective cars that violated INDYCAR rules Sunday during PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying. The record for the deepest starting spot of a '500' winner is 28th, by Ray Harroun in the inaugural race in 1911 and Louis Meyer in 1936. Two-time '500' winner Takuma Sato was second at 225.415 in the No. 75 AMADA Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, but that speed perhaps came at a cost. His car slowed on the backstretch of the 2.5-mile oval late in the session with an apparent problem, triggering the last of two caution periods. Sato's machine stopped on the deceleration lane between Turns 3 and 4 before it was placed inside the retaining wall in that area. Sato is starting second in the race (10 a.m. ET Sunday, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). 'I would say we weren't entirely happy with (car setup) yet, but we were making good progress,' Sato said. 'We were pointing in the right direction, so I want to check all the data. We had a mechanical failure on the last run and lost performance on one side of the car. It's too early for me to say what that was until the team investigates it, but I almost lost control in Turn 1, and we are just fortunate I didn't hit anything.' Six-time series champion Scott Dixon ended up third at 225.200 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Dixon, aiming for his second '500' win and first since 2008, is starting fourth. Devlin DeFrancesco, starting 16th, jumped to fourth in the two-hour final practice at 224.778 in the No. 30 Dogecoin Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Power, starting 33rd, rounded out the top five at 224.419 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. Pole sitter Robert Shwartzman, the first '500' rookie to claim the top starting spot since 1983, was 29th at 220.987 in the No. 83 PREMA Racing Chevrolet. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Team Penske both put two cars in the top five in a session that featured thick packs of traffic but also mechanical problems for a handful of drivers. Sato wasn't the only RLL driver to face mechanical trouble, as Graham Rahal's trying month continued when his No. 15 United Rentals Honda was returned to Gasoline Alley after just 45 minutes. 2016 '500' winner Alexander Rossi lost time on track with a water leak in his No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet. The first caution of the final practice was triggered just past the halfway point when flames erupted from the back of 2014 Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay's No. 23 DRR CUSICK WEDBUSH SECURITIES Chevrolet on the backstretch. Hunter-Reay guided the stricken car to the top of pit lane before he scurried from the car and surveyed the damage as the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team extinguished the flames. recommended
Fox Sports
16-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
History-Chasing Josef Newgarden Stays Speedy as Fast Friday Looms
INDYCAR The usual – and speedy – suspects occupied the top of the charts Thursday in practice for the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, but the first true measure of ultimate pace will be revealed Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Two-time reigning '500' winner Josef Newgarden led the six-hour session at 226.632 mph in the No. 2 Shell V-Power NiTRO+ Team Penske Chevrolet. Newgarden, who has been in the top three all three days of practice, is trying to become the first driver to win 'The Greatest Spectacle in Racing' three consecutive years. SEE: Practice Report Speeds will jump during the next practice, from noon-6 p.m. ET on Fast Friday presented by Turtle Wax (noon-4 p.m., FS2; 4-6 p.m., FS1; FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). The Honda and Chevrolet engines that power the field will feature approximately 100 more horsepower due to increased boost levels that also will be available during PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying on Saturday and Sunday. 'Pretty solid week so far,' Newgarden said. 'The team's been doing a lot of great work. We've showed up really prepared. We're still going through the motions – can't get ahead of ourselves. We're excited for Fast Friday. 'It's going to be quite hot tomorrow, so we're going to try to work around that and forecast the change going into Saturday and Sunday as the temperature is going fluctuate quite a bit from what we're going to see on Fast Friday.' Conditions today on the 2.5-mile oval changed from the first two days of practice, as air temperatures climbed to nearly 90 degrees with no rain after showers interrupted practice in cooler weather Tuesday and Wednesday. Six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon was second at 225.457 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Dixon has ended up in the top four all three days this week as he seeks his second '500' victory and first since 2008. Conor Daly continued his strong week in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet by posting the third-fastest speed of the day, 224.893. After ranking 21st Tuesday, Daly has been in the top five the last two days. Pato O'Ward, passed by Newgarden on the final lap of the race last year, was fourth at 224.467 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. 2014 Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay rounded out the top five at 223.983 in the No. 23 DRR CUSICK WEDBUSH SECURITIES Chevrolet. Drivers spent much of the day continuing to hone Race Day setups in traffic. But a few drivers began qualifying simulations later in the day, running without the benefit of an aerodynamic tow. Two-time series champion Newgarden was the fastest driver on the no-tow list at 222.555. But Kyle Kirkwood cemented himself as a driver to watch on Fast Friday presented by Turtle Wax and in PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying this weekend, as he was the second fastest without a tow at 222.372 in the No. 27 Siemens Honda of Andretti Global after leading the no-tow chart the first two days of practice. Christian Rasmussen was the first driver to make contact with the SAFER Barrier this week. At 4:13 p.m. ET, Rasmussen spun in Turn 2 and made light contact with the rear of the No. 21 ECR Splenda Chevrolet. Rasmussen was unhurt and returned to the track later in the day after repairs to slight damage. All 34 drivers attempting to earn one of the 33 spots in the starting field turned a total of 2,213 laps (5,532.5 miles) today. Before the six-hour practice started today, Arrow McLaren Team Principal Tony Kanaan completed his refresher test in the No. 17 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet driven by 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson. 2013 Indy 500 winner Kanaan will be on standby to substitute for Larson in the car on Race Day, May 25 if a weather delay forces Larson to leave for his full-time NASCAR drive at Charlotte Motor Speedway before the Indy 500 starts. Larson is attempting the 'double' of racing in the Indy 500 and the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 25. The 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 25 (10 a.m. ET, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). recommended
