Andretti Autosport signaled it’s ready to rebound this weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course after taking two of the top three spots, including the No. 1 position, in practice for the Honda Indy 200 doubleheader Saturday morning.
2012 NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Ryan Hunter-Reay led the speed charts with a top lap of 1 minute, 6.3034 seconds in the No. 28 DHL Honda under sunny skies on the 13-turn, 2.258-mile road course. 2014 series champion Will Power was second at 1:06.3952 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet.
CLICK IT: Practice 1 Results | Qualifying Groups
Alexander Rossi boosted the resurgence for Andretti Autosport – winless this season – by ending up third at 1:06.4299 in the No. 27 NAPA AUTO PARTS / AutoNation Honda.
Points leader and five-time series champion Scott Dixon was fourth at 1:06.4407 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda despite a spin off course midway through the session, while Santino Ferrucci rounded out the top five at 1:06.5613 in the No. 18 SealMaster Honda.
Andretti Autosport placed four cars in the top 10, as Colton Herta was eighth and Marco Andretti 10th.
Practice was halted by a red flag approximately halfway through the 75-minute session when Pato O’Ward spun off course in Turn 12 and hit the tire barrier. O’Ward was unhurt.
Up next is qualifying for the NTT P1 Award for Race 1 at 2 p.m. (ET), live on INDYCAR Pass on NBC Sports Gold. Competition for the pole should be tight, as less than five-tenths of a second separated the top seven drivers in practice.
Live NBCSN coverage of the 75-lap Race 1 starts at 4:30 p.m. today, with the green flag at 5 p.m. Race 2 starts at 1 p.m. Sunday, live on NBC.
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