By: Spencer Neff
July 2, 2021
Starting things off with a 45-minute practice session on Friday afternoon, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES began on-track preparations for the Honda Indy 200 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.
Newgarden leads Practice 1
Following two near-misses at his first win of the season, Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden posited the fastest lap on the 13-turn, 2.258-mile road course.
The 2017 Race Winner ran a best lap of 1m07.2524 (120.870 miles per hour) and was .2526 of a second ahead of Arrow McLaren SP’s Pato O’Ward. Jack Harvey finished third, best among the Honda entries behind the Chevrolet duo.
The Meyer Shank Racing driver is still looking for his first win and will look to do so at the team’s “home track”, near their headquarters in Pataskala. During the session, a few drivers saw issues in an otherwise clean session.
Just over halfway into the session, Arrow McLaren SP’s Felix Rosenqvist spun on the exit of Turn 1. As he was unable to restart, the red flag was thrown.
Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian’s Colton Herta and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Takuma Sato also endured off-track runs but were able to continue on.
Up Next
Here is the schedule for the remaining on-track activities this weekend. Keep tabs on this weekend’s action with IndyCar1909.com and our social media platforms, listed at the bottom of our webpage. All times listed are local track time (Eastern).
Follow tire strategies for qualifying and the race, here
Saturday, July 3
9-9:50 a.m.: NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 2, Peacock Premium (live)
Noon-1:15 p.m.: Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (Three rounds of knockout qualifying), Peacock Premium (live); TV: NBCSN (8 p.m. ET, Same-day delay)
3:30-4 p.m.: NTT INDYCAR SERIES final practice, Peacock Premium (live)
Sunday, July 4
11:58 a.m.: “Drivers, start your engines” Noon: NBC on air
12:05 p.m.: The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the HPD Ridgeline (80 laps/180.64 miles), NBC (Live)
Header Image By Matt Fraver/INDYCAR
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