Running on the more forgiving alternate tires, Swedish driver Felix Rosenqvist set an impressive lap time of 1m00.3390s at the 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street circuit, catapulting to the top of the leaderboard during the final segment of Friday’s practice session.
Rosenqvist, who transitioned from Arrow McLaren to MSR during the offseason, showcased a commanding performance, clocking in a substantial lead of 0.4722s ahead of his former teammate, Pato O’Ward.
For the practice session in St. Petersburg, a new format was implemented, dividing the field into two groups.
The session kicked off with a 20-minute “All Cars” segment, followed by two 10-minute segments for each group, alternating between odd and even numbered pit boxes. Similar to qualifying rules, the clock stopped for each red flag condition during the practice segments.
Marcus Armstrong from Chip Ganassi Racing secured the third position, trailing behind Rosenqvist by 0.4792s.
Will Power, driving for Team Penske, claimed the fourth spot (+0.5019s), showcasing his skills in the penultimate segment opposite Rosenqvist, O’Ward, and Armstrong.
Rinus Veekay demonstrated early promise, securing the fifth position (+0.5458s) in the No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet. Following him were Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske), Romain Grosjean (Juncos Hollinger Racing), and Colton Herta (Andretti Global) in the sixth to eighth positions, respectively.
The reigning two-time IndyCar Series champion, Alex Palou, secured the ninth position in his No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
Substituting for the injured David Malukas, Callum Ilott managed to secure the 10th position in the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.
Throughout the practice session, there were three instances of red flags, all occurring at Turn 10. The first red flag emerged with roughly seven minutes remaining during the second segment, caused by Chip Ganassi Racing rookie Kyffin Simpson locking up and getting stranded in the runoff area.
Shortly after, Pietro Fittipaldi (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) faced a similar situation, bringing out the second red flag.
The final red flag was prompted by Santino Ferrucci, who also missed the corner in the last two minutes of practice. However, the session resumed promptly and concluded under green flag conditions.