Morning update from Belle Isle

Gorgeous morning here on Belle Isle. The sun is shining, temperature is in the low 70s. A few Grand-Am GT cars are on the track now, in their first practice session. The Indy cars will have their first and only practice session of the day from 11:10-12:25. Qualifying for tomorrow's race starts at 3 p.m. today

Also, the Indy cars will not practice again until Sunday's morning warm-up, as qualifying for Sunday's race will be tomorrow morning.

As for the event itself, everything looks first-class as you would expect with Roger Penske. Staff are friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. And while I did not see much promotion on the outskirts of the city, the race is heavily promoted in downtown Detroit.

Of course, the issue with Belle Isle is always the track. Historically, the tight island layout has not created the most exciting racing, and last year's running was marred by the track coming undone about halfway through the race. Hopefully, this year's redesigned layout, and improved surface make for better racing.

More to follow later today… Brian C. reporting from Belle Isle