By: Spencer Neff
July 25, 2025
After winning two of the last three races in the last 13 days, Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward was fastest during opening practice for Sunday’s Java House Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
O’Ward, who has not started better than sixth (2022) or finished better than fifth (2021) on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn permanent road course in Salinas, California, turns a best lap of 1m09.2069 (116.416 mph) during the first of a pair of split group sessions.
Andretti Global’s Colton Herta, the 2019 and 2021 pole and race winner, was second behind O’Ward’s Chevrolet, with a lap .1104 of a second back in his Honda entry.
Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong was third, with points leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing in fourth. Palou, who has finished on the podium in all four of his starts at Laguna Seca, has won twice there (2022 and 2024) and is 99 points ahead of O’Ward with four races to go in the 17-race 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship.
PREMA Racing’s Callum Ilott bookended the Top Five for Chevrolet. Although PREMA makes their Laguna Seca debut this weekend, some of Ilott’s best INDYCAR results were at this venue. His last start here in 2023 resulted in one of his fifth-place efforts and he started in second the year prior.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Louis Foster, who swept the INDY NXT races in 2024, was best among the rookie trio in Friday’s practice.
There were two major incidents during the opening 40-minute session designated for all 27 cars. First, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Devlin DeFrancesco veered off course between Turn 4 and 5 before making heavy contact with the inside wall.
About five minutes after the session resumed, Alexander Rossi spun in Turn 6 and made heavy contact with outside wall. Both drivers climbed from their damaged race cars but did not make it back on track in the session.
With less than two minutes left in the second 10-minute group session, Josef Newgarden of Team Penske spun near Turn 8 atop the infamous “Corkscrew”. Newgarden was stuck in the gravel and the AMR Safety Team dispatched to push his stuck race car.
Once the red flag was lifted, drivers were allowed one final lap before the checkered flag was flown on the day.
Up Next
Here is the remaining on-track schedule for the weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Stay with IndyCar1909.com and our social media for the latest on the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
At-track schedule (all times local):
Friday, July 25
3:35-4 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice 2, FS2 (Live)
Saturday, July 26
8:30-9:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 2 (45 minutes limited guarantee), FS1 (Live)
10-10:30 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Qualifying (Two groups, 12-minutes each / Fastest lap determines the lineup for Race 1, second fastest lap determines the lineup for Race 2), FS1 (Live)
11:35 a.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey NTT P1 Award qualifying (three rounds of knockout qualifying), FS1 (Live)
1:31 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 “Drivers Start Your Engines”
1:36 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), FS2
Sunday, July 27
9:02-9:27 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES final practice, FS2 (Live)
10:01 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 “Drivers Start Your Engines”
10:06 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), FS1 (Live)
Noon – FOX on air
12:15 p.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey “Drivers, start your engines”
12:22 p.m. – Java House Grand Prix of Monterey (95 laps/212.61 miles), FOX (Live)
Header Image By Travis Hinkle/INDYCAR
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