The NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ annual fall test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is on tap this week, and it will be historic in nature.
After the NTT INDYCAR SERIES debuted hybrid racing in July, all cars participating in this two-day event will use the energy recovery system. Eleven teams will be in attendance, led by Team Penske driver Josef Newgarden, the winner of the past two Indianapolis 500s presented by Gainbridge, and this year’s second-place finisher, Pato O’Ward of Arrow McLaren.
Newgarden and O’Ward, along with reigning series champion Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing, will be among the five drivers on the 2.5-mile oval Thursday. These three will join 2022 “500” winner Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global in the afternoon session (1-5 p.m. ET) testing tires for Firestone.
Thursday morning, Nolan Siegel of Arrow McLaren will go through the series’ standard Rookie Orientation Program. Siegel previously completed the three-stage process while a member of Dale Coyne Racing, but the 19-year-old driver is required to do so again because he has yet to earn a starting spot in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Friday, 11 car-and-driver combinations will take to the historic oval for sessions that will run from 10 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m. Newgarden, Palou and Ericsson will be joined by three other former “500” winners: Helio Castroneves of Meyer Shank Racing, Ryan Hunter-Reay of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing and Alexander Rossi of Ed Carpenter Racing.
Arrow McLaren will replace O’Ward with team newcomer Christian Lundgaard. Other drivers participating include AJ Foyt Racing’s Santino Ferrucci, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Conor Daly, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal and a Dale Coyne Racing driver to be announced. The test marks the team debuts of Rossi and Lundgaard.
The only team not participating will be PREMA Racing, which will begin its NTT INDYCAR SERIES testing for its new two-car team after the first of the year. PREMA has announced one driver for its Chevrolet-powered program: series veteran Callum Ilott.
The hybrid system offers the competitors and their twin-turbo V6 engines an additional 60 horsepower. Previous iterations of the hybrid package were previously tested during the development process, but this event marks the debut of the system as it will race next May.
The 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is Sunday, May 25.
Fans can view the test free of charge from the spectator mounds in front of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum.