NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 11-12
PREVIEW Iowa Speedway (USA)
Crossing the line to pick up his first podium of the season last Sunday, Felix Rosenqvist is gearing up for a swift return to NTT INDYCAR SERIES action this weekend with an important double-header at Iowa Speedway’s intense short oval.
After finally scoring his hard-earned first podium with Arrow McLaren SP last weekend on the streets of Toronto, Rosenqvist is back on track just a few days later to take on an entirely different challenge.
Coming up fast – literally – is the 0.875-mile Iowa Speedway; dubbed “The World’s Fastest Short Track”. With lap times of just 18 seconds, it’s the shortest and most intense venue on the schedule – and with two races to be staged this weekend, it’s twice the fun and double the stakes.
“It was great to finally get a podium last weekend, and it just adds energy going into Iowa,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “It’s a completely different track to Toronto, but we’ve had a fast car on the ovals this year and I, for example, got the pole in Texas. I think it’s another good opportunity for us and I qualified in the top ten for both races at Iowa when we last came there in 2020, so I’m feeling confident.”
As the only double-header event of the season, the two races this weekend will take place on Saturday and Sunday respectively, the first covering 250 laps and the second spanning an extended distance of 300.
The grids for both races will be set in a single qualifying session on Saturday, with each driver attempting two consecutive flying laps. The first will be used to form the grid for Race 1, and the second will shape the field for Race 2.
“It’s probably even more important than usual to roll off with a strong car this weekend,” Felix Rosenqvist continues. “We’ll only get a single practice session, and then two laps in qualifying that could well decide the entire weekend.
“True, the races may be long, but it’s such a short lap and that makes you extremely vulnerable to dropping off the lead lap if you’re not running up front. That’s normally hard to recover from. It’s going to be a special weekend, for sure.”
This weekend’s races mark rounds 11 and 12 of the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule. Practice begins on Friday.
TIME TABLE
All times local (U.S. Central)
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 11-12
Iowa Speedway
Newton, Iowa (USA)
Friday 22 July
Free Practice: 3:30-5:00 pm
Saturday 23 July
Qualifying: 9:30-10:45 am
Race 1 (250 laps): 3:00 pm
Sunday 24 July
Race 2 (300 laps): 2:25 pm
TIMING: INDYCAR App / racecontrol.indycar.com
ENTRY LIST: view here
TRACK DATA: view here