Takuma Sato recorded the fastest lap for three consecutive days in the practice of the Indy 500. He has made a name for himself as the leading candidate for the pole position.
Friday, the day before the Indy 500 qualifying, is called “Fast Friday.” This is because the participating teams will repeat the simulation on a machine that has been powered up by about 90 horsepower from the practice so far with the turbo boost for qualifying, and jump up the speed more than the previous day.
This year’s Fast Friday was a very limited day due to strong winds. Takuma Sato (Dale Coyne Racing with RWR), who has recorded the fastest laps in a row in the past two days of practice, jumped to the top with a lap of 38 seconds 6616 = average speed of 232.789 mph in the evening. .. Takuma Sato, who marked the fastest lap in all three days, was given a big cheer at an amazing speed for a strong wind.
In the early stages of practice, Alexander Rossi (Andretti Autosport), the 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner, took the lead with an average speed of 21.883 mph at 38.8127, finishing second on Fast Friday. ..
Even in Practice 5 where 33 entries ran in qualifying mode, Honda occupies 1st and 2nd place, and 6 laps were in the top 10.
The practice that started at noon continued until 6 pm in the evening. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which was blessed with fine weather, was packed with fans from the morning, as it was expected to be a very busy day, with 33 cars taking turns on the course and qualifying simulations. However, strong winds continued to blow in Indianapolis throughout the afternoon, making it extremely difficult to lap at high speeds of 230 mph (= 370 km / h or more).
The team waiting in the garage hoping that the wind would calm down heard the forecast that the conditions would be almost the same on Saturday, the first day of qualifying, and more machines were running on the course after the middle of the session. However, many teams avoided risk and minimized driving. It was clear that breaking the car would make it impossible to run in qualifying or adversely affect handling, so every team was careful in setting and driving the car.
Takuma Sato worked with his teammate David Malukas (Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Motorsports) to try to overcome difficult conditions. Two people ran on machines with different settings and tried to collect information. In the harsh conditions of heat and strong winds, Takuma Sato was the top time and Marcus was 7th in 38 seconds 8913 = 231.414 mph.
In addition to Takuma Sato, Marcus and Rossi, Marcus Ericsson (Chip Ganassi Racing) is 38.82 26 = 4th at an average speed of 231.782 miles per hour, and 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing) is 38.8718. = 5th at an average speed of 231.530 miles per hour, 2013 Indy 500 winner Tony Kanaan (Chip Ganassi Racing) was 38.8950 = 8th at an average speed of 231.392 miles per hour, with 6 Hondas in the top 10.
Saturday’s qualifying will start at 11:00 am, one hour earlier due to the possibility of bad weather in the afternoon. This year’s Indy 500 has adopted new rules for qualifying, with the fastest 12 players on the first day of qualifying fighting for pole position on the second day of qualifying.
Takuma Sato (Dale Coyne Racing with RWR)
“I’m honestly happy to be at the top for three days of practice. I think this is a result of the team’s preparations during the winter. I’m really proud of our team. What conditions have we been so far? However, being able to set a good time leads to confidence. It is important to have a stable lap time of 4 laps in the qualifying from tomorrow, so I would like to compare the data with my teammate David Marcus and prepare for tomorrow. I think. The starting order for the qualifying has been decided to be 10th, so it would be nice if I could run in cool conditions. I would like to complete the two-day qualifying and show my run to the fullest on Sunday. “
Alexander Rossi (Andretti Autosport)
“Today was a very difficult day due to the strong wind conditions. We kept watching what our rivals would do with little running. We can learn a lot by laps. Unfortunately I couldn’t, because today’s conditions were very wild. Our car has been much faster since it started running and we know what advantages it has. Tomorrow is today. I think we know what to do, even in different conditions. “
Category: Category: F1 / Sato Takuma / Indycar