It’s time for Practice 2 in the Motor City! It’s the driver’s last chance to get to know the track before it’s time to put the pedal to the metal in qualifying for the Detroit GP. Reigning series champion Alex Palou took the top spot in Friday’s Practice 1, but defending Detroit GP winner Kyle Kirkwood wasn’t far behind.
With the weather 40 degrees chillier than on Friday, it’s a whole new challenge for the drivers ahead of qualifying.
Go Go Go!
Cars hit the track for the final practice session of the Detroit GP weekend, and the drivers waste no time in heading out. Christian Lundgaard sets the first time in the session with a 1:11.1, far removed from yesterday’s benchmark times.
However, shortly into the session, a red flag is brought out for debris on the track, and the cars head back into the pits.
The top 3 consists of Lundgaard from O’Ward and Malukas, all in the 1:11’s.
Green once again
A short-lived red flag quickly gets the drivers back on track.
Kyle Kirkwood quickly puts his foot down, setting a 1:06.64. Times quickly start to tumble as multiple drivers hit times in the 1:08’s.
Rinus VeeKay brings out the next red flag, as stopd. Coming down the hill at Turn 4, his car has a big technical issue. 31 minutes remain in the final practice session in Detroit.
Kirkwood sits in P1, followed by Lundgaard and McLaughlin.
Back on track
The track is cleared, and cars are back on track with 25 minutes remaining in the session.
Kirkwood quickly put his foot down, with a rapid-fire 1:05.09, creeping up on the top times from Friday’s session.
20 minutes left in Practice for the Detroit GP sees the top 4 drivers covered by 2-tenths of a second, as Josef Newgarden spins out on track. The No.2 Penske driver brings out the 3rd red flag of the session. However, the green flag is out quickly, and the session restarts.
It’s an ECR 1-2 with Rossi leading from Rasmussen, with a 1:03.66 and 1:03.69, respectively.
Kirkwood’s No.27 hits the wall in Turn 1 and picks up some issues with his right rear wheel. He manages to make his way back to the pits as the fourth red flag of the session comes out.
Kirkwood leads from Rasmussen and Palou with 14 minutes left on the timing tower.
Time ticks to zero
The closing minutes of Practice for the Detroit GP see Kirkwood set a 1:03.17, rapidly followed by Rasmussen and Palou. The top 15 drivers are separated by less than a second with 8 minutes left, as the drivers find a few tenths of a second here and there on the streets of Detroit.
Scott McLaughlin pips the top spot from Kirkwood with the final 2 minutes of the session ticking away, followed by Palou and Power as they pop into P2 and P3. However, Kyle Kirkwood quickly regains the top step as the checkered flag waves on the Detroit GP’s final practice session.
The all-cars session ends with a top 3 of Kirkwood in P1, followed by McLaughlin and Palou.
Split sessions in the Motor City
Yet another red flag is raised by the Arrow McLaren of Christian Lundgaard in Group A, his blown engine bringing his paypaya car to a halt on the track. The green flag is brought out shortly after, as Lundgaard’s car is cleared from the track.
As the drivers in Group A bounce around the city streets, Alex Palou sets a quick 1:04.66, taking advantage of a rubbered in track.
Graham Rahal suffers from a huge lock-up at Turn 3 but keeps his car out of the wall. The RLL driver stays out despite picking up a huge flat spot on his tires.
Marcus Armstrong throws down the hammer with a stunning 1:02.54, setting the fastest time of the weekend so far. Additionally, 4x Detroit race winner Scott Dixon sits not far behind with a 1:02.73.
Sting Ray Robb remains in the pit lane for his split session, with more mechanical issues.
Palou shows his consistency with 2 back-to-back 1:02.3 laps, as he sits firmly in P1. He goes even faster on his next lap, setting the first sub-1:03 time at 1:02.25.
Group A’s session comes to a close with Palou fastest with a 1:02.2, followed by Malukas and Dixon in second and third.
Group B’s final run
The final of the split sessions begins with Pato O’Ward setting an opening time of 1:08.62.
Louis Foster is quick to break into the quicker times, with a 1:06.69 netting him his first visit to P1 of the Detroit GP weekend. Although, O’Ward, Rosenqvist, and Power are quick to take the top spots as times quickly tumble into the 1:04’s.
O’Ward from Roesnqvist and Power with 8 minutes on the clock.
The drivers are taking full advantage of a rubbered-in track and warm tires, as Scott McLaughlin sets a 1:02.63 on hard tires, and takes P1. McLaughlin leads Rosenqvist and Power.
Will Power topples Palous’ best time as he lays an absolutely rapid 1:02.13, as yellow flags slow the field down. Santion Ferrucci slams the brakes and locks up, but manages to keep it out of the barriers.
The first 1:01 of the weekend is set by defending Detroit GP winner Kyle Kirkwood with a 1:01.96. However, it’s quickly beaten by his Andretti teammate Power with a 1:01.94, finding thousandths of a second on the streets of Detroit.
The split session comes to a close for Group B, with Kirkwood leading from Power and O’Ward with a stunning 1:01.8. It’s an Andretti 1-2.
