FORT WORTH, Texas – In an effort to add an additional lane of grip at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway, IndyCar officials announced Friday an extra practice session on Saturday. This is in preparation for Sunday’s XPEL 375, the first oval race of the season for the NTT IndyCar Series.
It’s the latest attempt to deal with the ongoing problem caused by the PJ1 sealant on the asphalt of the high-banked oval and how it adversely affects the IndyCars.
The extra 30-minute session to work in another lane will be from 5 to 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The participating drivers include Ed Carpenter, Helio Castroneves, Pato O’Ward, Will Power, Graham Rahal, Felix Rosenqvist and Takuma Sato.
Combined, they will use a total of 10 sets of Firestone tires from last year’s race. Each driver will have a set to use. Rahal and Power will have two sets to use.
The final IndyCar Series practice will be held from 5:45 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. ET.
Several drivers believe running laps on a high groove can help solve the grip issue, but without the extra session, they did not want to risk their previously limited time on the track.
“Honestly, if I’m not mistaken, I think we were in the same situation as we were last year,” O’Ward said. “As much as we’d love a second lane, I just don’t think the PJ1 is a surface that’s ever going to give us that second lane. If it does, it’s going to be way slower, so it’s not going to be a second lane where you can fight and pass people, rather than shovel your way back in a way.
“I don’t know, man. I think last year, even with that PJ1 there, there is enough space where you can pull off a move. It’s not easy at all. I remember I got a little wiggly on it last year on restarts and stuff.
“I mean, it is what it is. Can’t just go on there and peel it, right, go back to how it was a few years ago. I never got a chance to race without it. I feel like it’s unfair for me to give pros and cons or be comparing them.
“I think we have to work with what we have. We had a great race there last year. We proved to be able to be making moves. Maybe not two or three at a time, but one at a time. It certainly wasn’t easy.
“I just think it’s going to be the same this year.”