MARKHAM, Ontario — After a forgettable Friday on the streets of Markham because the track wasn’t completed on time to have any on-track action, Saturday was a new day for IndyCar as they prepared for Sunday’s Ontario Honda Dealers Indy At Markham.
Once the tire barriers were installed overnight, Saturday’s action began flawlessly, including an NTT IndyCar Series practice session that began at 10 a.m. ET.
Although it’s a new course for IndyCar, it’s the same story as Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing was the fastest driver in both the all-cars session and in Group A. His fast time was 1:14.9915 around the 12-turn, 2.19-mile street circuit.
When practice began at 10 a.m. Eastern Time, the ambient temperature was 72 degrees Fahrenheit and the track temperature was 85 degrees F, according to Firestone engineers.
After issues getting the tire barriers and fencing set up to complete the course and get FIA certification on Friday, it was time to go racing on the beautiful street circuit in Markham. With a smooth racing surface, drivers were able to attack the track until 10:25 a.m. ET when Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global spun out and stopped in Turn 4. He was able to refire the car and return to pit lane but had to stay parked for five minutes because he brought out a red flag.
After a quick return to green, the second Red Flag waved when Kyffin Simpson hit the Turn 6 barrier with his left-side rear. He also continued on course but had to pay another five-minute penalty for bringing out the red.
Felix Rosenqvist ended the session by spinning and driving through the runoff as the checkered flag waved.
The track speed improved by 2 seconds during the 25-minute session.
Alex Palou was the fastest in the all-cars session with a lap at 1:14.9915 in the No. 10 DHL Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing. He was followed by Louie Foster’s No. 45 RLL Honda at 1:015.0744, Caio Collet’s 1:15.2114 in the No. 4 Chevrolet, David Malukas’ 1:15.3298 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet and Scott McLaughlin’s No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet at 1:15.3900.
That was followed by split sessions with two groups.
Palou was also the fastest in the Group A session at 1:15.0821 followed by Alexander Rossi’s No. 20 Chevrolet at 1:15.668, Marcus Armstrong’s No. 66 Honda at 1:16.235, Nolan Siegel’s No. 4 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet at 1:16.236 and Dennis Hauger’s No. 19 Dale Coyne Racing Honda at 1:16.306.
“It was a fun, it was a ton of fun,” Palou said. “We’re not used to having a street course where the tarmac is so good it’s grippy. Turns 1 and 2 are scary, but it’s also fun. The backstretch is cool. It’s a very cool track. It’s very tiring and very physical, but it’s a lot of fun. I cannot wait for it.”
Malukas was frustrated about the soft tires, but thought the race course and the layout was fantastic.
“The track is awesome,” Malukas said. “It’s so much fun. I’m having so much fun out there on the primaries. They work really well for us. We were top three on the board. The speed is there; we’ve got to just put it all together. Trying to figure out where this car needs to be for qualifying. it’s a guessing game,”
Group B followed and there was a brief Red Flag near the end of the session when Hauger brushed the wall. Caio Collet was the fastest in that group at 1:15.0454, the second fastest speed overall in all sessions.
After Hauger’s red flag, there was 1 minute, 12 seconds left in the session giving some drivers one more lap.
When it was over, Collet was on top followed by Foster’s 1:15.072, Scott McLaughlin’s 1:15.298. Will Power’s 1:15.315 and Ericsson’s 1:15.442.
