ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.—For the twelfth straight year America’s fastest open-wheel racers are screaming down the streets of the seaside city of St. Petersburg.
The Verizon IndyCar Series is bringing the latest versions of its 650-bhp, twin-turbo, V6-powered formula cars to race on a tight and twisting 1.8-mile, 14-turn course laid out on its bayfront thoroughfares and a runway of a small private airport, in an event called the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, or the St. Pete GP.
This year the race is the season opener— the first time the teams and drivers get to test their off-season developments in a competitive environment. So, the off-season work seems to have paid off.
Two-time St. Pete GP winner Will Power of Penske Racing managed to set fast lap of the day at 1:00.9431 at 106329 mph, only three-tenths of a second slower than his lap record, set last year—and he did it after wrecking and nearly destroying his Chevrolet-powered Dallara in morning practice.
