2nd Toronto practice washed out and an update from Exhibition Place

Conor Daly chats with James Hinchcliffe

Ramesh Bayney

Heavy rain has washed out the 2nd practice session for the IndyCar in preparation for the Honda IndyCar GP of Toronto. No one took the risk of driving in the rain when the rest of the weekend should be dry.

Team Penske’s Juan Pablo Montoya got an early jump on the competition by recording the fastest lap during the first practice session Friday for the Honda Indy Toronto.

Montoya, the current Verizon IndyCar Series points leader and the reigning Indy 500 winner, was clocked at 1:00.6343 in the No. 2 PPG Automotive Refinish Team Penske Dallara/Chevrolet for his fastest lap around the 11-turn, 1.755-mile Exhibition Place street circuit.

"We went out, didn't get in many laps because we had a problem with the brakes on the PPG Chevy, but the speed was there," said Montoya, who owns two victories this season. "It's encouraging, but with the rain it just makes it hard because it washes away any rubber we put down and tomorrow we have to start from zero."

Team Penske teammate Simon Pagenaud had the second-fastest lap — 1:00.7922 — in the No. 22 Avaya Team Penske Dallara/Chevrolet.

“I love racing in Toronto and it’s clear that the Avaya Chevy boys have brought another fast car to the track this weekend," stated Pagenaud. “You would like to have as much track time as possible because this is such a demanding racetrack, so the rain was a bit of a bummer. It’s something we all have to deal with, though, and I’m ready to get back on the track tomorrow."

Scott Dixon had electrical issues in the first practice this morning. So he went out for a reconnaissance lap in the rain to test the car.

In other news
There have been 31 Indy Cars races held in Toronto at Exhibition Place since 1986. Temporary concrete walls form the 11-turn, 1.755-mile race circuit that sits on a 192-acre parkland on the shoreline of Lake Ontario.

The largest entertainment venue in Canada is home to sporting events, banquets and this year, the 2015 CIBC Pan Am games. With all the changes for the Pan Am games and the addition of the 400 room boutique Hotel X which is scheduled for an early 2016 opening, including a 11,500 square foot Cinematech that will be inside the hotel which will be useful for the annual Film Festival held every September, could the race track be forced to relocate? Or at the very least will the landscape changes require squeezing the track into a new configuration? And even if the configuration stays intact will there be enough room to accommodate the series?

One thing is that Pit lane will need to be extended past the new hotel. Further, BMO field is undergoing an expansion as well, which at minimum gives the feeling of being cramped!

Of course, IndyCar could look to move this race to another venue?

The obvious place that comes to mind is Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, affectionately known as Mosport to the locals, about one hour drive from the city. The 2.5 mile 10-turn circuit hosted Formula One in the 60s and 70s and currently has the NASCAR Camping Truck Series and the Canadian Tire series races on their schedule.

Toronto Island, which is located on Lake Ontario, is another choice. The largest urban car free community in North America is just offshore from the city center and home to the Billy Bishop Toronto Airport. The island is similar to Belle Island except that a it also features a small community of residents. Would the residents even appreciate the noisy cars and influx of visitors for 3 days to their tiny home?

Racing on the streets of downtown would be out of the question. Part of Lake Shore Boulevard is closed for the race these days and it causes a traffic delay that is not acceptable to the residents of this fine city.

Time will tell if in the future The Toronto race will remain in Exhibition Place or be held at a new venue. Lucille Dust reporting live from Toronto for AR1.com