INDIANAPOLIS — Pato O’Ward was happy with leading practice Thursday for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, but the Mexican and his 32 rivals already are looking ahead to the increased power and speeds of “Fast Friday” at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
O’Ward led at 227.308 mph in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, a lap he turned in traffic with the benefit of an aerodynamic tow in the first 35 minutes of the six-hour session. It was O’Ward’s fastest lap of the week and the third fastest overall, behind 228.080 by Conor Daly and 228.026 by reigning “500” winner Alex Palou in cooler conditions Wednesday.
“We got a race run in, we got some qualifying simulations in, and the car is in good balance,” O’Ward said. “Tomorrow when the boost comes up, it does change quite a bit. Yeah, so far it’s been very smooth.”
Teams and drivers will shift their focus to four-lap qualifying simulations during practice from noon-6 p.m. ET Friday. The Honda and Chevrolet engines that power the field will feature approximately 100 more horsepower due to increased boost levels that also will be available during PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying on Saturday and Sunday.
“Today, we noticed (reaching top speeds) over the course of two corners or like half a lap, but tomorrow you’ll go from the start of the exit of (Turn) 2 to the entry of (Turn) 3 almost like full beans, so it’s cool,” O’Ward said.
Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves was second at 226.977 in the No. 06 Cleveland Cliffs Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian, leading a banner day for the team with all three drivers in the top four.
Marcus Armstrong was third at 226.841 in the No. 66 Acura Honda of MSR, followed by teammate Felix Rosenqvist at 226.626 in the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda.
2016 “500” winner Alexander Rossi rounded out the top five at 226.364 in the No. 20 Java House Chevrolet of Ed Carpenter Racing, a solid rebound after an engine change late Wednesday afternoon.
Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato was the fastest car today without the benefit of an aerodynamic tow, with an eye ahead to qualifying simulations Friday and single-car qualifying runs Saturday and Sunday. Sato’s best “no-tow” lap was 223.828 in the No. 75 Amada Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, the fastest solo lap of the week.
Scott McLaughlin was second on the “no-tow” list at 223.738 in the No. 3 Pennzoil Team Penske Chevrolet.
All 33 cars entered in the event this year combined to turn 1,469 incident-free laps today, the lowest total this week as teams started to focus on qualifying simulations. Rossi turned a session-high 68 laps on the 2.5-mile oval.