Four Takeaways From The Honda Indy Toronto Practices

A few things have stood out in these sessions that could make things a little bit more complicated. Here are three takeaways from the two practice sessions.

Very Low Grip

Kyle Kirkwood said it’s ‘probably the lowest amount of grip I’ve driven in INDYCAR in a very long time’ and that was evident all throughout the first session. 

Christian Lundgaard started it off with a moment with the wall on the exit of turn 11. Championship leader Alex Palou also had a couple of brushes against the wall.

Turn 8 also proved tricky. In one instance, the cars of Scott McLaughlin, Pato O’Ward, and Santino Ferrucci ended up there at the same time; luckily, there was no contact.

The lack of grip could be attributed to the snowy winter weather and the fact that there aren’t many support series here, so when the drivers hit the track, they’re running over the dust.

The New Bump:

Any street track is bumpy, but a new bump has appeared in the streets of Toronto that could cause a problem for drivers.

Team Penske’s Will Power, who had the fifth-quickest lap overall, highlighted the bump

“There’s a massive new bump at the end of the straight into (Turn) 3,” he said. “It actually hurts (and it’s) right in the braking zone”

Turn 3 is usually one of the more easier overtaking spots in Toronto, but with the new heading into 3, drivers will begin to feel apprehensive up the inside during the race.

The bump was created after a bit of repaving due to the removal of a bridge. Will Power even suggested grinding the sport ahead of Sunday’s race, which was Friday night

Green Tires Are Too Soft:

After the first practice session, the Firestone Firehawk alternate green race tires that are provided for all temporary street course races seemed to be too soft around the streets of Toronto.

Power said it feels like it will for sure be a three-stop race. With all these questions about how the tires will perform, more questions arise as to what tires to use in quali and the race. Do they maximize track position in qualifying and use multiple green or do they save those tires for the race?

Andretti Looks Fast Again:

Last year in Toronto, Andretti finished 1-2 with Herta and Kirkwood, and from the first two practice sessions, they look to be fast again

Today, Kirkwood followed his impressive practice 1 time with the second-fastest time in practice two. He finished behind his teammate Herta. The two drivers are about a half-second faster than the next-best driver.

“These Andretti guys are freaking fast,” Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward said after the session.

Next on the schedule is NTT P1 Award qualifying at 2:30 p.m. ET (FS1, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). The 90-lap race will be at noon ET (FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).