Rain delay at Indy, Andretti on top

Andretti fastest with a tow
Andretti fastest with a tow

Fast Friday remains under caution as the crews dry the track after rain showers passed through a little over an hour ago.

Fastest so-far are Andretti Honda teammates Marco Andretti and Conor Daly – both over 230 mph with a tow.

Fastest without a tow are Ed Carpenter 229.879 mph and Alexander Rossi 229.520 mph.

Gash in track surface
Gash in track surface

Fernando Alonso continues to struggle with his McLaren Chevy and has put up only the 30th best non-tow time. He's finding the cars a lot harder to drive with the current low-downforce setup compared to what he had back in 2017.

When Kyle Kaiser crashed earlier he put quite a gash in the asphalt between turns 3 and 4

We expect the track to go back green before too long.

Rembrandt Charms Backs DragonSpeed at Indy 500

Rembrandt Charms has extended its sponsorship of DragonSpeed and rookie driver Ben Hanley to include the 103rd Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. Having joined the global endurance racing team’s NTT IndyCar Series entry as a lunch sponsor at the St Petersburg and Barber rounds, Rembrandt Charms is looking forward to being part of the world’s biggest one-day sporting event.

“Rembrandt Charms, like IndyCar itself, is enjoying strong growth by responding to changing consumer interests," said Vice President Eric Lux. “Rembrandt Charms is consistently voted a top-selling, hot brand by retail jewelers. Our traditional charms and charm bracelets have been featured in 2019 fashion runways and leadingfashion magazines such as Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, and Women’s Wear Daily."

Ben Hanley
Ben Hanley

“We are already using our IndyCar involvement to boost to our consumer advertising and promotional campaign on behalf of the thousands of retail jewelers that carry our collections, including a racing-themed bracelet for fans of the sport," continued Lux.

Eric himself raced with DragonSpeed team principal Elton Julian to win the 2011 American Le Mans Series LMPC title and drove for DragonSpeed in 2015, helping Mercedes-Benz secure its first American GT title. “I admire Elton’s boundless determination and effort which have led his team to great achievements, including victories in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship, and European Le Mans Series so far this season." Eric says. “Rembrandt Charms is proud to support Elton, Ben, and the entire DragonSpeed team in their quest to qualify for the Indy 500 this weekend. And we’re just as proud to bring an all-American brand to the all-American race."

“It’s a genuine pleasure to continue our association with Eric and Rembrandt Charms as we attempt to qualify for our first Indy 500," said Elton Julian. “Eric understands what racing can do for his business and is as ambitious about exploiting the opportunities as we are to establish ourselves in IndyCar."

Rembrandt Charms has been designing and manufacturing charms and charm bracelets for over 50 years, and today offers “The World’s Largest Charm Collection in Silver and Gold." All Rembrandt Charms products are manufactured in the United States or Canada and covered by a lifetime warranty. They are sold exclusively through authorized retail jewelers; store locations can be found at RembrandtCharms.com.

Mark C. reporting

Fast Friday Times so-far

Pos No Name Time Diff Gap Tow-Speed Engine Team
1 98 Marco Andretti 38.986 –.—- –.—- 230.851 Honda Andretti Herta Autosport w/Curb-Agaj
2 25 Conor Daly 39.031 0.0447 0.0447 230.587 Honda Andretti Autosport
3 21 Spencer Pigot 39.060 0.0738 0.0291 230.415 Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
4 22 Simon Pagenaud 39.075 0.0888 0.0150 230.326 Chevy Team Penske
5 20 Ed Carpenter 39.151 0.1648 0.0760 229.879 Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
6 9 Scott Dixon 39.172 0.1858 0.0210 229.756 Honda Chip Ganassi Racing Teams
7 18 Sebastien Bourdais 39.199 0.2123 0.0265 229.601 Honda Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan
8 63 Ed Jones 39.203 0.2169 0.0046 229.574 Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
9 27 Alexander Rossi 39.211 0.2245 0.0076 229.529 Honda Andretti Autosport
10 7 Marcus Ericsson 39.214 0.2275 0.0030 229.512 Honda Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
11 26 Zach Veach 39.216 0.2301 0.0026 229.496 Honda Andretti Autosport
12 60 Jack Harvey 39.221 0.2353 0.0052 229.466 Honda Meyer Shank Racing with Arrow SPM
13 15 Graham Rahal 39.224 0.2382 0.0029 229.449 Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
14 2 Josef Newgarden 39.235 0.2485 0.0103 229.389 Chevy Team Penske
15 88 Colton Herta 39.285 0.2990 0.0505 229.094 Honda Harding Steinbrenner Racing
16 48 JR Hildebrand 39.346 0.3596 0.0606 228.741 Chevy Dreyer and Reinbold Racing
17 23 Charlie Kimball 39.355 0.3693 0.0097 228.685 Chevy Carlin
18 12 Will Power 39.382 0.3955 0.0262 228.533 Chevy Team Penske
19 3 Helio Castroneves 39.393 0.4071 0.0116 228.465 Chevy Team Penske
20 14 Tony Kanaan 39.399 0.4131 0.0060 228.430 Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
21 30 Takuma Sato 39.402 0.4161 0.0030 228.413 Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
22 19 Santino Ferrucci 39.439 0.4525 0.0364 228.202 Honda Dale Coyne Racing
23 33 James Davison 39.473 0.4865 0.0340 228.006 Honda Dale Coyne with Byrd and Belardi
24 39 Pippa Mann 39.474 0.4881 0.0016 227.996 Chevy Clauson-Marshall Racing
25 28 Ryan Hunter-Reay 39.480 0.4934 0.0053 227.966 Honda Andretti Autosport
26 77 Oriol Servia 39.517 0.5309 0.0375 227.750 Honda Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
27 5 James Hinchcliffe 39.518 0.5322 0.0013 227.742 Honda Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
28 66 Fernando Alonso 39.567 0.5807 0.0485 227.463 Chevy McLaren Racing
29 42 Jordan King 39.586 0.5995 0.0188 227.355 Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
30 4 Matheus Leist 39.607 0.6208 0.0213 227.233 Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
31 10 Felix Rosenqvist 39.645 0.6591 0.0383 227.013 Honda Chip Ganassi Racing Teams
32 59 Max Chilton 39.673 0.6869 0.0278 226.854 Chevy Carlin
33 81 Ben Hanley 39.706 0.7197 0.0328 226.667 Chevy DragonSpeed
34 24 Sage Karam 39.906 0.9193 0.1996 225.533 Chevy Dreyer and Reinbold Racing
35 31 Patricio O'Ward 40.123 1.1369 0.2176 224.310 Chevy Carlin
36 32 Kyle Kaiser 1:09.321 30.3350 29.1981 129.830 Chevy Juncos Racing
37 77 Oriol Serva No Time Honda Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports