IndyCar tests new car at high-banked Texas

FORT WORTH, TEXAS (AP) - Will Power has certainly been good in the IndyCar Series‘ new car, winning three of the four races this season.

All of those were on road and street courses.

IndyCar drivers are now preparing for the Indianapolis 500, their first race on an oval since Dan Wheldon’s fatal accident at Las Vegas in last October’s season finale. An open test Monday at Texas provided an indication of how the new cars with less downforce will perform on oval tracks, especially when teams have more flexibility in setups.

“What we’re trying to do is try to ensure that it’s not a pack race like it has been in the past, and like it was in Vegas,” Power said.

Wheldon was killed when his car sailed into the fence in a 15-car accident, and his head hit a post in the fence. A report later determined that pack racing on a high-banked oval contributed to the accident.

Texas was the IndyCar’s first open test on a 1 1/2-mile track since Wheldon’s accident. The Indianapolis 500 will be the first of four oval races in a five-week span.

Texas, which hosts the series on June 9, is a high-banked oval like the Las Vegas track also owned by Bruton Smith.

“There’s always concern, especially after what happened in Vegas,” Scott Dixon said.

But Dixon said he isn’t worried about racing on the high-banked ovals “as long as we come to these places and everybody gets together as a group” to determine how to create a little bit of separation on the track.

Dixon believes that giving teams more setup options should also help make a difference.

“Going back to the fact that I think the car has a lot of range of options, I was pleasantly surprised, to be honest,” Dixon said. “We have options. It’s not like the previous, where we were sort of locked in and backed into a corner.”

When there are limited options, cars will often be more similar and that can make it harder for them to get away from each other.

Power was happy to have the Texas test, and the chance to drive the new car on an oval before getting the 2 1/2-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“It’s felt pretty good, pretty solid,” Power said.

Dixon had the fastest of the 1,172 combined laps at 212.371 mph Monday. During the Texas twin races last June, the fastest lap was 216.263 mph.

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