Mid-Ohio – EL2: O’Ward the fastest in a studious session

It's Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren) who was finally the fastest, during this Saturday session where for the first time soft tires were available. These are generally reserved for the first free session, that of Friday, but due to the rain that fell yesterday afternoon, theIndyCar has decided to authorize the use of Firestone soft rubbers. Which therefore had the effect of giving a lot of work to the different teams! It was necessary to test the two available compounds, as well as continuing to work on the balance of the single-seaters since the addition of the hybrid system.

Several drivers, including Álex Palou (Ganassi) and Felix Rosenqvist (Meyer Shank) also made mistakes in the braking zone of turn four. Arriving downhill at the fastest point on the circuit, drivers must therefore gauge their braking differently, due to the regeneration provided by the hybrid system. Graham Rahal (Rahal Letterman Lanigan) and Colton Herta (Andretti) completed the top 3 in a session that was stopped twice. One of these interruptions was precisely due to Herta, who made a mistake in turn 12. Despite contact with the tire wall, the American was able to restart and set a good time.

Trouble in Turn 12 for @ColtonHerta!

📺: #INDYCAR practice on Peacock pic.twitter.com/bO7HY3Tf7V

- NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) July 6, 2024

The only French pilot entered, Romain Grosjean (Juncos Hollinger) placed 15th, just behind Nolan Siegel. The Arrow McLaren team debutant had moved up to third position in the session with around ten minutes to go before the checkered flag, as he continues to adapt to the car he would have to drive until the end of this season, and in 2025. Qualifying will begin at 21 p.m. French time.

Mid-Ohio Grand Prix – Free Practice 2

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