Graham Rahal to test Indy road course on Wednesday - MotorSportsTalk

Graham Rahal will test a Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda this coming Wednesday, Sept. 4, on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course as the track continues to think about staging an IZOD IndyCar Series race on the infield circuit in May of 2014.

Several configurations of the circuit will be tested by Rahal. It will mark just the second time that an IZOD IndyCar Series machine has turned laps on the IMS road course; the only other time came in the fall of 2011 as part of development for the then-new Dallara DW12 that made its on-track debut the following year.

Rahal has experience on the IMS road course, with runs in both Formula BMW and Firestone Indy Lights events.

“Anytime a driver can take laps at Indianapolis, even on the road course, it is a special day and I am happy to have been asked to be part of this test and to provide some input on how an INDYCAR might perform at IMS,” said Rahal in a statement from the Speedway.

“I have raced on the road course at IMS, so I already have a good idea of what to expect in an IndyCar over most of the track. It will be particularly interesting to run the car on different portions of the track, including the Turn 1 road course section.”

The Indianapolis Star‘s Curt Cavin reports that should a IndyCar road race at IMS come to fruition, it would be held on the weekend of May 10-11, 2014 – two weeks before the 98th Indianapolis 500 on May 25, 2014.

In the same Speedway statement, IMS president J. Douglas Boles said that there had been no decision made yet about a future IndyCar race on the road course. But he mentioned wanting to use the test to “help refine the investment we are planning to make to the track portion of our overall facility planning.”

The Speedway’s officials are looking to pour nearly $100 million into the facility in the coming years, and a part of their master plan could involve improvements to the oft-maligned road course.

“As we look to the future of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the goal is to make changes to the road course that provide the most flexibility for its potential use and create a layout that is entertaining for our fans and enjoyable for our drivers – whether it is for IndyCar testing or racing, sports cars, MotoGP or other uses,” he said.

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The NBC Sports IndyCar power rankings naturally were as jumbled as the action on the streets of St. Petersburg after a chaotic opener to the 2023 season.

Pato O’Ward, who finished second because of an engine blip that cost him the lead with a few laps remaining, moves into the top spot ahead of St. Pete winner Marcus Ericsson and Alexander Rossi, who finished fourth in his Arrow McLaren debut. Scott Dixon and St. Pete pole-sitter Romain Grosjean (who led 31 laps) rounded out the top five.

St. Pete pole-sitter Romain Grosjean (who started first at St. Pete after capturing his second career pole position) Callum Ilott (a career-best fifth) and Graham Rahal entered the power rankings entering the season’s second race.

Three drivers fell out of the preseason top 10 after the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg – including previously top-ranked Josef Newgarden, who finished 17^th after qualifying 14^th.

Heading into Sunday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway, here’s NBC Sports’ assessment of the current top 10 drivers through the first of 17 races this year (with previous preseason rankings in parenthesis):

NBC Sports’ IndyCar Power Rankings

1. Pato O’Ward (5) – If not for the dreaded “plenum event” in the No. 5 Chevrolet, the Arrow McLaren driver is opening the season with a victory capping a strong race weekend.

2. Marcus Ericsson (7) – He might be the most opportunistic driver in IndyCar, but that’s because the 2022 Indy 500 winner has become one of the series’ fastest and most consistent stars.

3. Alexander Rossi (10) – He overcame a frustrating Friday and mediocre qualifying to open his Arrow McLaren career with the sort of hard-earned top five missing in his last years at Andretti.

4. Scott Dixon (3) – Put aside his opening-lap skirmish with former teammate Felix Rosenqvist, and it was a typically stealthily good result for the six-time champion.

5. Romain Grosjean (NR) – The St. Petersburg pole-sitter consistently was fastest on the streets of St. Petersburg over the course of the race weekend, which he couldn’t say once last year.

6. Scott McLaughlin (6) – Easily the best of the Team Penske drivers before his crash with Grosjean, McLaughlin drove like a legitimate 2023 championship contender.

7. Callum Ilott (NR) – A quietly impressive top five for the confident Brit in Juncos Hollinger Racing’s first race as a two-car team. Texas will be a big oval litmus test.

8. Graham Rahal (NR) – Sixth at St. Pete, Rahal still has the goods on street courses, and Rahal Letterman Lanigan remains headed in the right direction.

9. Alex Palou (4) – He seemed a step behind Ericsson and Dixon in the race after just missing the Fast Six in qualifying, but this was a solid start for Palou.

10. Will Power (2) – An uncharacteristic mistake that crashed Colton Herta put a blemish on the type of steady weekend that helped him win the 2022 title.

Falling out (last week): Josef Newgarden (1), Colton Herta (8), Christian Lundgaard (9)