3 days ago
Tornado near track cancels IndyCar practices Friday at Iowa Speedway. What we know
NEWTON, Iowa — IndyCar's on-track action Friday in preparation for its doubleheader race weekend at Iowa Speedway was canceled as severe thunderstorms rolled through the area surrounding the track, including a tornado that touched down less than two miles from the track.
Indy NXT managed to run most of its lone practice of the weekend before yellow flags came out at 2:01 p.m. local time (CT) for rain drops that began to fall, giving the junior series just under 30 minutes of running before the storms arrived.
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IndyCar was scheduled to have its first of two weekend practice sessions starting at 2:35 p.m., one meant for drivers to solely run the high-line around the track in an effort to lay down rubber and help the quality of the racing this weekend, but at 2:12 p.m., lightning strikes were spotted within eight miles of Iowa Speedway, putting on-track action on an indefinite hold as patrons were asked to exit the grandstands and seek shelter.
Various members of the IndyCar and Indy NXT paddocks hunkered down inside the Newton Club suites and the infield media center, the two largest permanent structures around the track. A tornado warning was announced by the National Weather Service at 2:28 p.m., followed shortly by several rounds of tornado sirens.
A wall cloud and cloud rotation could be seen just north of the track, with additional rotation spotted to the south. According to a race official, a tornado touched down 1.5 miles from Iowa Speedway. A tornado warning for the area surrounding the track expired at 3:15 p.m., though a tornado watch continued until 8 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.
IndyCar was scheduled to hold its high-line practice from 2:35 to 3:20 p.m., with its lone traditional practice just afterwards from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Qualifying for Indy NXT's race Saturday was slated for 5:35 to 6:20 p.m. Friday early evening.
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Just before 4 p.m. as rain continued to fall at the track, IndyCar announced that on-track activity for the rest of the day had been canceled and would resume Saturday.
In the revised Saturday schedule at Iowa Speedway, IndyCar will hold a 30-minute high-line running session from 10-10:30 a.m. (ET), followed by an all-cars practice from 10:45-11:30 a.m. Indy NXT will then hold its lone race of the weekend starting at noon until roughly 1 p.m. IndyCar's qualifying session for both races will run from 1:30-2:30 p.m. As scheduled, IndyCar's race broadcast on Fox will kick-off at 5 p.m. with the green flag scheduled for 5:20 p.m.
IndyCar's practice action will air on FS2, with Indy NXT's race and IndyCar qualifying being shown on FS1.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Confirmed tornado cancels IndyCar practice at Iowa Speedway; updated schedule
