IndyCar: Saturday Report from Iowa Speedway
It is going to be a hot day today for the Hy-VeeDeals.com 250 presented by DOORDASH at the Iowa Speedway. The NTT INDYCAR Series drivers’ fire suits were soaking wet yesterday after the 90-minute practice in the low 90s. And today’s temperatures are predicted to be 98 degrees at the start of the 250 lap race scheduled for 3:00 pm.
Qualifying rules for this weekend’s oval doubleheader are different than other oval races. The drivers will go out in reverse order based on entrant points. Each driver will be presented with one chance to qualify.
Two warmup laps will be permitted before the qualification laps begin. INDYCAR may permit additional warmup laps if deemed necessary.
When the entry takes the green flag, lap one will determine the car’s starting position for race one today. Lap two will determine the car’s starting position for the Hy-Vee Salute to Farmers 300 presented by Google on Sunday. The fastest qualification lap for each race receives the coveted NTT P1 Award for pole position.
Will Power, the Team Penske driver in the no 5 Verizon 5G entry, and Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport driver in the no 28 DHL entry, spoke with the media on Friday after the only practice session for this weekend.
Grosjean Penske Entertainment Chris Jones
Asked about the early morning qualifications this morning, Grosjean remarked, “You know what, it’s not so much the lap, the one lap for each race. It’s just that you wake up in the morning, you get breakfast, the next thing you know you’re out for one warmup lap, then quallie lap. You don’t have warmup. I think that’s really something different. I like it. But going into turn one, first thing in the morning, as fast as you can get…”
” I think qualifying is always important, but some races more than others. I think in INDYCAR you can win from anywhere. I feel like here if you have a better car than others on tire life, you could be looking good at one point after 40 or 50 laps. Yes, it’s important to be qualifying up front. Will has more experience, he’s talking about top 10. ”
Will Power added his take on the early morning qualifying attempt. “That’s a tough one. I was thinking about the same thing. I’m like, Man, how do you get out of bed then try to go as fast as you can around Iowa for two laps?”
“It’s a difficult race to win when Josef Newgarden is in the game. He’s had a very strong career at this track. Yeah, I think he’ll always be in the mix. But I’ve got the same car. Hopefully, I can make it work.”
“You just can’t tell in this series, you can’t. You don’t know when a yellow will fall. You can’t say, Okay, I’m going to have this race that I’m going to get points. It may just not be the case. You’ve got to take every race, put everything into it because you never know.”
AR1 asked about the difference between having the doubleheader here compared to the bumpy Detroit race. The Aussie, who was the fastest in practice, gave us his answer, “Two bumpy tracks, similar. Yeah, I mean, same amount of points. It’s similar, except it’s an oval.”
“Man, it’s tough. It’s hot. Since the grip level has gone down, it’s not as physical. The wheel is a little lighter. You’re not like just holding on for two hours dying.”
AR1 also asked Alex Palou, the 2021 Series Champion driving in the Ridgeline Lubricants no 10 Chip Ganassi Racing entry, what he thought about doing the doubleheader here. “I think this will be a bit tougher because you mentally you have to be so concentrated on track and then the heat is crazy.”
Scott Dixon’s Birthday
The recent Toronto race winner, Scott Dixon, had another birthday on Friday. He turned 42 years old but is an example that it does not matter what your age is, you can win an INDYCAR race at any age. Achieving the rank of tying for the most wins with Mario Andretti after this win, the humble driver took this birthday in stride.
AR1 asked him how he felt. Dixon replied, ” it is just another day. It is just a number.”
The qualifying is scheduled for 9:30 am. The 250 lap race is scheduled for 3 pm, after the 1 pm Tim McGraw concert.
AR1 will keep you updated today.
Lucille Dust reporting live from Iowa Speedway