The four drivers closest to NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship leader Alex Palou received valuable reconnaissance Aug. 7 during a private Firestone tire test at Nashville Superspeedway, site of the season-ending Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on Sunday, Sept. 15.
Will Power of Team Penske (second in points, 49 behind Palou), Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing (third, -53 to Palou), Colton Herta of Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian (fourth, -57 to Palou) and Pato O’Ward of Arrow McLaren (fifth, -71 to Palou) turned laps on the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
While times and speeds are not officially released from private tests, various media reports and social media feeds have given an opportunity to try to make some itemized deductions:
Power Pushes to Top
Team Penske is the recent dominator of oval races in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, winning 10 of the last 13 circle-track events since the start of the 2022 season. That trend extended to the test Tuesday, as Power led in the No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet.
Dixon was second in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, .132 of a second behind fellow series champion Power. All four drivers were within less than two-tenths of a second of each other, as just .154 of a second separated the quartet after a day of testing.
Power’s chart-topping time comes with two caveats.
One, this was a tire test, in which drivers’ and teams’ main purpose is to help Firestone devise the best Firehawk rubber compound for safety and exciting racing in the season finale. So, speed isn’t always the ultimate goal. Still, race drivers are among the most competitive people on Earth, and they’ll all step on the gas when given the chance.
Two, Power said not to read too much into the speeds despite Penske’s recent oval dominance.
“I know it looks as though as if we’ve been very strong on ovals, and we have, but when I look at the last few races, I think it’s anyone’s game,” Power said. “I don’t think anyone has a big advantage. It’s very situational. Pit strategy, track position. We’ll see how that plays out.
“You can’t sit back and think this is easy because I can guarantee you it ain’t. It’s going to be very different always to what you expect, so you’ve got to be ready for the unexpected.”
Dixon Brings Good Historical Vibes
If there’s any driver who should feel good about his chances at Nashville besides the Team Penske trio of Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin, it’s Dixon.
He is one of only three non-Team Penske drivers to win on an oval in the last three seasons, as he triumphed last August at World Wide Technology Raceway. The other non-Penske circle-track winners are O’Ward and Marcus Ericsson.
Plus, Dixon has three wins in the eight previous INDYCAR SERIES races at Nashville Superspeedway. Nobody else has more than one. Dixon won three straight from 2006-08 with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Granted, those wins were 16 to 18 years ago, when the series used a different chassis (without an aeroscreen, too) and didn’t have the new hybrid system. Still, winning vibes matter – especially paired with Dixon’s wisdom and experience.
“Lots of great memories here,” Dixon said. “The team was always fast here. We had lots of wins here, which is always good.
“Hopefully we can have good side-by-side racing here like we did in the past. An oval to finish the season is always exciting.”
The next NTT INDYCAR SERIES event also is on an oval, the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline on Saturday, Aug. 17 at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis. It’s the first of four oval races in a five-event stretch to finish the 2024 season.