Detroit — Six-time IndyCar series champion Scott Dixon knows the Detroit Grand Prix circuit is a tough one, considering how bumpy and tight it is, and he is appreciative of efforts to smooth the race surface in certain areas and to split the qualifying sessions, but this is a place that truly is grueling for drivers, not to mention the teams.
The Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix moved back to the downtown streets in 2023, and the 1.7-mile, nine-turn circuit is challenging mentally and physically. IndyCar series leader Alex Palou, driving for Chip Ganassi Racing, was fastest during the series’ first practice session Friday, while defending race champion Kyle Kirkwood was second, and his Andretti Global teammate Will Power was third.
The IndyCar series qualifies on Saturday and the race is Sunday.
Dixon wasn’t thrilled with the circuit in 2023, its first year after moving from Belle Isle, and wishes it had more corners and room, but he knows he has to race what’s presented.
“New circuits, new places that we go to, there’s always room for improvement, and it’s not easy on downtown streets, for sure,” Dixon said Friday. “Each year they keep trying to try smooth and change it. But yeah, it’s a tough track. It’s very easy to lose concentration, make a mistake, and, obviously, I think for the race, as usual, will be mayhem.”
Dixon, who has 59 career wins, including four in the Detroit Grand Prix, said it’s easy to lose concentration in the Detroit Grand Prix for a number of reasons.
“It’s quite hard to become comfortable here,” said Dixon, in his 26th IndyCar series, 25 with Chip Ganassi Racing. “I think each lap you’re trying to push the limits, which we do at every track, but here with just the bumps and things like that, if you kind of miscalculate by a small amount, you’re confined by the walls (and) they’re very tight. There’s no real big runoffs or anything like that, so you got to take risks, and sometimes a lot of these circuits, you can get caught out, but here I’d say is more so than anywhere else.”
Santino Ferrucci, who drives for A.J. Foyt Enterprises, made his first career start eight years ago in the Detroit Grand Prix. The bumps in this circuit, he said, add to what make this race special.
“Having bumps in the middle of turns like 9, 1 or 6, 7 is a good thing,” Ferrucci said. “We’ve obviously smoothed a lot of that out due to driver’s request, but the problem is we smooth that out like we did in St. Pete for turn 2, 3, you’d get rid of a passing zone going into 4. So yes and no, it’s good and it’s bad. I really love Belle Isle for that reason. We never really touched the track, and it was always technical, especially trying to come out of 2. Everybody complains about something, but it’s amazing to me that what (they’ve done) to smooth this place out and make it beautiful, but sometimes you just want things to be left alone.”
What Ferrucci wouldn’t mind changing is the race schedule, specifically, adding a break between last Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 and the Detroit Grand Prix.
“I hate that we do this,” Ferrucci said Friday. “This has got to be the most grueling thing on the calendar. I get racing five weeks in a row, it’s fine, but we did an engine on Fast Friday (in Indianapolis), and they’re there till 1 in the morning, and they’re back there for the whole weekend. During the month of May, the one day off they get, or half day off they get is kind of Saturday before the race, before they’re up at 3:30 a.m. running all night, then the race is done, cars go straight back, and they’re working till 2 a.m. every night to turn cars around to come here all worn out. I mean, it’s terrible. One weekend off, it’s not going to kill the momentum. It’s not going to hurt anything. The winner of the 500 would get to enjoy winning the 500, which is the greatest race in the world. So I stand on the fact that we should have a weekend off, I really do.”
Kirkwood has no issue with being back on the track five days after the Indianapolis 500.
“I like driving every single weekend. I think it’s great,” Kirkwood said. “My off weekends, I like to do whatever I possibly can to stay driving. Maybe for the crew guys and whatnot (it’s a problem), and I think that’s probably the thought process, but quite honestly, it shows people’s weaknesses a little bit better. People that are more prepared, more prepped, have the idea of what they need to do, and are focused on the future, do better in these circumstances. So, I think it’s a good thing.
“And there’s also the viewership side, where we come off a phenomenal Indy 500, maybe the best ever. The finish was incredible. People want to see IndyCar the next week, and they’re gonna turn it on and be like, ‘Oh, I watched that last week, I’m gonna put IndyCar on again and see how this race goes.’ I think we need to keep racing, we need to have back-to back-to-back races. I think it’s great for everything. Of course it’s going to be hard on people, like any sport is, but that’s why we train, that’s why we do all the work in the off season.”
Kirkwood also likes that the IndyCar series goes from the high-speed Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval to the grueling Detroit Grand Prix.
“It shows the diversity of our sport going from the highest speed to one of the lowest speed circuits, and mixing it all up,” Kirkwood said. “It shouldn’t be a bunch of street courses, a bunch of road courses — that would kind of look weird in a schedule, so I like that it’s a different cadence.”
Dixon said he doesn’t get the point of racing the weekend right after the Indianapolis 500.
“I think they try to say that it keeps the momentum going,” Dixon said, “but I think the momentum is far better off in celebrating the champion of the 500.”
Team Penske driver Scott McLaughlin said he’s fine not having a break after the Indy 500.
“There’s a lot going on for sure for everyone,” McLaughlin said. “It’s been like this for a long time. It sucks for the teams in terms of it is tiring and whatnot, but I enjoy it. I think a lot of people do, and it really sets our sport apart.”
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This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: IndyCar drivers grapple with adjusting to Detroit Grand Prix course
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