Fastest rookie calls Indy daunting

Will Power

Chris Jones/IRL

"Initially when I went out I thought, ‘How the hell do you go flat here?’ But we crept up to it. We had a pretty safe and stable car there at the end, it was pretty solid," said Australian Will Power

"I was happy to get flat all the way around because that takes you to the next level and now we start trimming out. We did plenty of mileage because we’re a bit wary of what the weather’s going to be like later in the week, so I’m very happy for the Aussie Vineyards team.

"You run a little downforce to make the car safe to begin with. Obviously the track’s a little dusty and we’re rookies and a rookie team as well. At the end of the day it makes the car more settled and plus, when you’re going quicker there’s more downforce, so it makes the car feel nice and solid and consistent throughout the corner.

"Now the challenge is to start heading toward 225 mph, you do that by trimming the car out, that’s when the driving really comes in and you’ve got to be smart with the setup. You don’t want the car to bite you and end up in the wall, it’s going to cost you a lot of time."

"The KV Racing Technology team wanted to get in as many laps as possible today, which is what we achieved. To be quick today means we are gradually getting there and I was able to go flat the whole way.

"I felt really comfortable with the Aussie Vineyards – Team Australia car and once I was able to go flat, the car felt better and I was able to start letting some of the front wing out.

"The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is something I have never driven on and I found it unique because it was so fast. It’s not really like an oval because of its four corners and flat banking, but almost a mixture between a banked oval and a road course.

"It was something more than I had expected – daunting, and as far as ovals go, its more technical and therefore you can’t make a mistake."