Felipe Nasr’s return to NTT IndyCar Collection testing for Group Penske noticed the brand new Porsche Penske Motorsport IMSA GTP champion spend the morning and early afternoon periods at The Thermal Membership close to the highest of the timing screens. On the ultimate run on Tuesday, simply earlier than the solar fell behind the Coachella Valley hills, the Brazilian took the No. 3 Chevy to the highest of the working order.
Nasr’s unofficial lap of 1m40.947 was set in comparatively cool temperatures for the area, and with lots of the groups and producers specializing in the testing of recent growth items or chassis setup ideas, outright lap occasions weren’t significantly related as many of the automobiles weren’t in race specification.
Behind Nasr, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Hunter McElrea additionally shot ahead within the ultimate session to take second with a lap of 1m41.071s within the No. 21 Chevy. Former Williams F1 driver Logan Sargeant, who was making his IndyCar testing debut, ended the morning in second, led the center session, and was third within the ultimate outing when one of the best occasions had been set. Sargeant’s 1m41.139s lap was produced within the No. 06 Meyer Shank Racing Chevy, and got here on his 79th of 84 laps, essentially the most of any driver on the day.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Louis Foster was fourth within the No. 45 Honda at 1m41.432s, and after the reigning Indy NXT champion, it was two drivers whose afternoons had been restricted as a result of automotive points. In fifth with Arrow McLaren, Enzo Fittipaldi turned a finest lap of 1m41.833s within the No. 5 Chevy, however issues struck earlier than he was in a position to full a brand new tire run just like the others. And in sixth, Dale Coyne Racing’s Toby Sowery was dealt a number of setbacks as morning gremlins and a terminal engine downside within the No.18 Honda within the afternoon restricted him to 27 complete laps and an unrepresentative time of 1m42.021s.
For Nasr, working with Josef Newgarden’s two-time Indianapolis 500-winning race engineer Luke Mason, with whom he beforehand labored whereas testing for Carlin Racing, was a pleasant reunion. Ended the day feeling happy along with his tempo was a bonus, however Nasr was extra happy with the assistance he was in a position to present Group Penske with the vitality restoration system.
“It was a was a really productive day,” Nasr informed RACER. “This is likely one of the particular issues we get to do, driving for Roger, transitioning between the sequence, and it’s an awesome alternative for us to be taught each methods. Clearly, working the hybrid Porsche 963, there’s rather a lot that I felt that might be translated to the IndyCar when it comes to the regen phasing and the way that mixes with the braking zones and stuff like this.”
Due to his expertise in racing hybrid Method 1 automobiles for Sauber, and with Porsche and Penske within the hybrid Porsche 963 GTP, Nasr was the right alternative to check the brand new hybrid IndyCar and supply suggestions to his crew because the ERS models enter their second season of use in 2025.
“That was the objective of bringing me right here, was getting all of the information and expertise that I’ve with the hybrid automobiles that I’ve pushed previously,” he stated. “Simply to assist Penske and the engine producer and the crew normally to get really feel on the whole lot.
“And dealing with somebody like Luke, nice man, tremendous skilled and naturally, and ending the day P1, it’s all the time good. However a very powerful factor was serving to the crew to get all this info collectively and assist them develop their hybrid package deal even additional.”
