source: Max d'Orsonnens
Patrick
Carpentier ended his first day of testing at Phoenix International Raceway (PIR)
10th overall. The Red Bull Cheever Racing driver posted his fastest time on lap
132 of 157, driving around the one-mile oval track in 20.8854 seconds for an
average speed of 277.4 km/h. Carpentier was only 0.186 second off the pace.
''We had a good day of testing, but the results are not what the team was hoping
for,'' Carpentier said. ''The team is working really hard to improve the
oversteering on the car. We must also improve the aerodynamics of the Dallara
Toyota in order to keep up with the leaders. Unfortunately, they are forecasting
rain for tomorrow (Thursday) afternoon. Let's hope it stays away until the
evening.''
His teammate Alex Barron finished 12th overall, posting a best lap of 20.925
seconds
Brazilian Tony Kanaan was quickest of the 20 drivers on track today clocking a
fast lap of 20.6994 seconds. He was followed by his British teammate, Dan
Wheldon (20.7183 seconds), and American Scott Sharp (20.7703 seconds).
The second and final day of testing will take place tomorrow (Thursday) at 11:00
a.m. (ET). The last on-track session of the day will end at 6:00 p.m. (ET).
The IRL IndyCar® Series opens its 10th season of competition with the Toyota
Indy 300 at 2 p.m. (EST) on March 6, 2005 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The race
will be televised live on TSN.
Phoenix testing results