IndyCar: Sunday Morning Report from Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey

Alex Palou led this morning’s warm-up over Scott McLaughlin, Alexander Rossi and David Malukas.

Morning Warm-Up Times

Pos	No	Name	Time	Diff	Gap	Speed	Engine	Team
1	10	Alex Palou	1:12.9318	0.000s	0.000s	110.470	Honda	Chip Ganassi Racing
2	3	Scott McLaughlin	1:13.4435	0.5117	0.5117	109.701	Chevy	Team Penske
3	27	Alexander Rossi	1:13.5703	0.6385	0.1268	109.512	Honda	Andretti Autosport
4	18	David Malukas	1:13.6474	0.7156	0.0771	109.397	Honda	Dale Coyne Racing with HMD
5	29	Devlin DeFrancesco	1:13.7738	0.8420	0.1264	109.210	Honda	Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport
6	21	Rinus VeeKay	1:13.7992	0.8674	0.0254	109.172	Chevy	Ed Carpenter Racing
7	7	Felix Rosenqvist	1:13.8478	0.9160	0.0486	109.100	Chevy	Arrow McLaren SP
8	9	Scott Dixon	1:13.8854	0.9536	0.0376	109.045	Honda	Chip Ganassi Racing
9	26	Colton Herta	1:13.9340	1.0022	0.0486	108.973	Honda	Andretti Autosport w/Curb-Agajanian
10	28	Romain Grosjean	1:14.0163	1.0845	0.0823	108.852	Honda	Andretti Autosport
11	60	Simon Pagenaud	1:14.0920	1.1602	0.0757	108.740	Honda	Meyer Shank Racing
12	8	Marcus Ericsson	1:14.2023	1.2705	0.1103	108.579	Honda	Chip Ganassi Racing
13	77	Callum Ilott	1:14.2863	1.3545	0.0840	108.456	Chevy	Juncos Hollinger Racing
14	5	Pato O’Ward	1:14.3414	1.4096	0.0551	108.376	Chevy	Arrow McLaren SP
15	15	Graham Rahal	1:14.3951	1.4633	0.0537	108.297	Honda	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
16	45	Jack Harvey	1:14.4042	1.4724	0.0091	108.284	Honda	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
17	30	Christian Lundgaard	1:14.6869	1.7551	0.2827	107.874	Honda	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
18	12	Will Power	1:14.6983	1.7665	0.0114	107.858	Chevy	Team Penske
19	2	Josef Newgarden	1:15.0707	2.1389	0.3724	107.323	Chevy	Team Penske
20	20	Conor Daly	1:15.0733	2.1415	0.0026	107.319	Chevy	Ed Carpenter Racing
21	51	Takuma Sato	1:15.0893	2.1575	0.0160	107.296	Honda	Dale Coyne Racing w/RWR
22	14	Kyle Kirkwood	1:15.2001	2.2683	0.1108	107.138	Chevy	AJ Foyt Enterprises
23	16	Simona De Silvestro	1:15.5574	2.6256	0.3573	106.632	Chevy	Paretta Autosport
24	06	Helio Castroneves	1:15.7477	2.8159	0.1903	106.364	Honda	Meyer Shank Racing
25	48	Jimmie Johnson	1:15.8677	2.9359	0.1200	106.195	Honda	Chip Ganassi Racing
26	4	Dalton Kellett	1:16.1983	3.2665	0.3306	105.735	Chevy	AJ Foyt Enterprises

September 11, 2022

The feeling this morning is one of excitement for the final race of the NTT INDYCAR Series and one of sadness that the season will be over for almost six months after the race is completed today.

The season has been filled with multiple winners and sensational rookies making daring moves during the races. The return to Iowa Speedway with the awesome concerts and two races in one weekend. The closest championship race since 2013.

Today’s race will determine the championship. Will Power, driving the no 12 Verizon Team Penske entry, broke the all-time series pole record by winning his 68th. Today he could capture his second career championship for his team.

Power is the only driver of the five contenders for the title that starts in the top 12 on the grid today giving him an advantage if his race goes perfectly.

The feeling among the drivers is that the Firestone tires may be degrading quickly today and will require a different strategy to keep your position in the race. The low grip on the track has them concerned that pit stops may be the key to a good finish.

Scott Dixon, the driver of the no 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing entry, has said all weekend that he feels the tires for this weekend are going to degrade quickly and make this race look like the Indy 500 in terms of frequent pit stops. More than the usual three that would be normal for the 95-lap race.

The final practice of the season is scheduled for 9 am.

Green flag is scheduled to drop at 12:30 pm.

Lucille Dust reporting live from WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca