Source: Chris Owens/Penske Entertainment / other
SPEEDWAY, Ind. — It was a race that saw tons of strategy play out with the wet start to the race only for things to dry out and create a cacophony of chaos that had fans on the edge of their seats.
Colton Herta and his Andretti team made the right call last year on when to go to slick tires and eventually cruise to a win in the GMR Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
It was an interesting race, a lot going on,” Herta recalled. “Split strategies almost the whole time. Guys not sure if they could be on wets or slicks. Luckily we made those calls better than everybody else, we were able to take the win there.”
The forecast looks about as grim as it did last year for the race this coming weekend. Rain is likely to impact practice, qualifying, and the race itself with showers and thunderstorms in the forecast all weekend long.
The National Weather Service only expects spotty rain further into the weekend, so there could be some breaks in the action that might impact how teams manage their wet and dry tires like they did last year.
Regardless, Herta said that getting a good result in the GP is the best ay to set the tone for a good Month of May heading into the Indianapolis 500, not to mention the fact that Herta is 10th in the points heading into Indy.
“It’s so difficult in this series to win a championship without wins,” Herta said. “You have to be aggressive, and when there is an opportunity to win you have to really take it. It’s probably the hardest championship in the world as far as going from race to race.”
It’s been almost a full year since Herta’s last race win, which came in the GMR Grand Prix last season.
The points race is already incredibly tight with four different race winners this season and 11 points separating the top four drivers in the standings. Marcus Ericsson is the points leader just three points clear of Pato O’Ward in second, followed by Alex Palou, and Scott McLaughlin.
The schedule is quick and busy this weekend with two practice sessions planned for the morning and early afternoon on the road course. Qualifying will follow later that afternoon. The green flag for the GMR Grand Prix drops at between 3:30 and 4:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday.
