VeeKay leads 21-car IndyCar test at Barber
Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rookie of the Year Rinus VeeKay topped the times at Barber Motorsports Park, just over one-tenth clear of Colton Herta.
VeeKay lapped the lush, undulating 2.38-mile course in Birmingham, AL, in 65.6148sec to edge Colton Herta’s Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport by 0.1236sec.
In a test where the top 15 cars unofficially broke the qualifying lap record of 66.6001sec held by Sebastien Bourdais since 2016, Arrow McLaren SP’s Patricio O’Ward was third fastest on a 65.9, one tenth faster than Alexander Rossi of Andretti Autosport and Jack Harvey of Meyer Shank Racing.
In his first test for Chip Ganassi Racing, 2020 rookie Alex Palou was 11th, just a tenth slower than the team’s pacesetter on the day, Marcus Ericsson, while the driver he replaced Felix Rosenqvist, turned a 66.5, around 0.6sec off Arrow McLaren SP teammate O’Ward.
Reigning Formula E champion and two-time Macau Grand Prix winner Antonio Felix da Costa, got his first taste of IndyCar, as sole representative for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. The Portuguese 29-year-old performed well, turning more laps (75) than anyone bar Ericsson and NASCAR star Jimmie Johnson, and with 12th fastest time, he shaded all four Team Penske-Chevrolet drivers.
Scott McLaughlin was 1.3sec off the ultimate pace, but only 0.5sec slower than Penske pacesetter on the day, Josef Newgarden, suggesting the squad was running a different program.
Johnson turned 100 laps and got within 2.8sec of fastest time, and only 1.3sec from next slowest.
Several teams will reconvene at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on Nov. 10 for the final team test of the year.
| RANK | CAR NO | DRIVER | TEAM | ENGINE | FAST LAP | DIFF | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Rinus VeeKay | Ed Carpenter Racing | Chevy | 1:05.6148 | -.—- | 65 |
| 2 | 88 | Colton Herta | Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport | Honda | 1:05.7384 | 0.1236 | 74 |
| 3 | 5 | Pato O'Ward | Arrow McLaren SP | Chevy | 1:05.9059 | 0.2911 | 66 |
| 4 | 27 | Alexander Rossi | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:06.0179 | 0.4031 | 56 |
| 5 | 60 | Jack Harvey | Meyer Shank Racing | Honda | 1:06.0993 | 0.4845 | 45 |
| 6 | 20 | Conor Daly | Ed Carpenter Racing | Chevy | 1:06.1341 | 0.5193 | 62 |
| 7 | 28 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:06.1901 | 0.5753 | 54 |
| 8 | 8 | Marcus Ericsson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 1:06.2568 | 0.6420 | 86 |
| 9 | 9 | Scott Dixon | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 1:06.2579 | 0.6431 | 61 |
| 10 | 14 | Sebastien Bourdais | AJ Foyt Enterprises | Chevy | 1:06.3578 | 0.7430 | 61 |
| 11 | 10 | Alex Palou | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 1:06.3646 | 0.7498 | 74 |
| 12 | 15 | Antonio Felix da Costa | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | Honda | 1:06.3754 | 0.7606 | 75 |
| 13 | 2 | Josef Newgarden | Team Penske | Chevy | 1:06.4103 | 0.7955 | 59 |
| 14 | 26 | James Hinchcliffe | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:06.4412 | 0.8264 | 64 |
| 15 | 7 | Felix Rosenqvist | Arrow McLaren SP | Chevy | 1:06.5011 | 0.8863 | 53 |
| 16 | 12 | Will Power | Team Penske | Chevy | 1:06.6195 | 1.0047 | 62 |
| 17 | 22 | Simon Pagenaud | Team Penske | Chevy | 1:06.6347 | 1.0199 | 61 |
| 18 | 4 | Dalton Kellett | AJ Foyt Enterprises | Chevy | 1:06.6471 | 1.0323 | 70 |
| 19 | 3 | Scott McLaughlin | Team Penske | Chevy | 1:06.9409 | 1.3261 | 73 |
| 20 | 98 | Marco Andretti | Andretti Herta with Marco & Curb-Agajanian | Honda | 1:07.0890 | 1.4742 | 64 |
| 21 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Honda | 1:08.3984 | 2.7836 | 100 |
Related video
Previous article
Jimmie Johnson “shaving seconds off at a time” in IndyCar
Next article
Da Costa eager for more IndyCar opportunities after first test
About this article
| Series | IndyCar |
| Author | David Malsher-Lopez |
Opening day of Indy500 testing
Rinus VeeKay crashes during Indy 500 test
IndyCar: Defy Everything
IndyCar: Drivers Test at Texas Motor Speedway
IndyCar: Push-to-Pass test
Is Arrow McLaren SP ready for IndyCar’s title fight?
With Patricio O'Ward and Felix Rosenqvist leading its line-up, 2021 could be the year Arrow McLaren SP-Chevrolet joins the IndyCar elite, writes David Malsher-Lopez.
Dale Coyne picks the Top 10 drivers in his giant-slaying team
Over 37 seasons, Dale Coyne has run no fewer than 80 Indy car drivers – including himself! Ahead of his first season running Romain Grosjean, we asked Coyne to pick the best 10 drivers ever to compete for him. By David Malsher-Lopez.
Why enigmatic Marco Andretti will be missed
Last Friday, Marco Andretti announced he is withdrawing from fulltime IndyCar racing. David Malsher-Lopez explains how this third-gen racer was a puzzle in the car, but a straight shooter off-track.
Why Roger Penske is an American motorsport icon
In this exclusive one-on-one interview, Roger Penske reveals the inner drive that has made him not only a hugely successful team owner and businessman but also the owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar. He spoke to David Malsher-Lopez.
Is the mighty McLaren M16 the greatest ever Indy car?
When founder Bruce McLaren died in June 1970, his team could have folded. Instead, his loyal band rallied to produce a string of winners - including an Indy car game-changer that won three Indy 500s in six years.
How Newgarden delivered his best season, yet still lost
Josef Newgarden was our pick as top IndyCar driver of 2020 but his finest season-long run of performances failed to yield the championship. David Malsher-Lopez explains why.
2020 IndyCar Review and Top 10 drivers of the year
David Malsher-Lopez explains how the 2020 NTT IndyCar Series was unlike any other, and why it featured familiar and unfamiliar faces competing for glory.
How Dixon won his sixth IndyCar title, in his own words
Chip Ganassi Racing’s newly crowned six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon takes us round by round through his remarkable season. David Malsher-Lopez listens.
