Kyle Kirkwood Tops Opening Practice at Belle Isle

Fresh off the long month of May at Indianapolis, the IndyCar Series is back at it again this weekend in the Motor City. Round 7 of the 2022 campaign begins as teams and drivers now focus on the season championship. At the top of those standings sits the reigning Indy 500 winner, Marcus Ericsson. The Chip Ganassi driver holds a 13-point lead over Pato O'Ward, and a 14-point edge on his teammate, Alex Palou.

The Indy 500 winner typically doesn't fare so well the following weekend, due to media obligations, lack of sleep, etc. In the past, the next race was actually a doubleheader, but that is not the case this year. The event in Detroit this weekend is just one race, the 30th and final one on the streets of Belle Isle. Beginning in 2023, the race will take place in downtown Detroit.

While Ericsson may not have lady luck on his side due to an Indy 500 hangover, he has performed well on the 2.35-mile, 14-turn temporary street course. The Swedish driver won the first race of the doubleheader here last year, and finished runner-up in the second race back in 2019. His 6.3 average finishing position at the track is the best among active drivers.

Rookie Kyle Kirkwood has had a busy week after running in his first Indy 500 five days ago. On Wednesday, it was announced that Kirkwood would be returning the Andretti Autosport next season to drive the No. 27 Honda. With his future solidified, the talented young driver put his No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing at the top of the Belle Isle speed chart on Friday.

Just behind Kirkwood was O'Ward, the defending Detroit race winner. Third fastest overall was his future teammate, Alexander Rossi. The Arrow McLaren SP organization announced yesterday that Rossi would be joining the team in a multi-year deal beginning next season. Rounding out the top five in today's practice were Indy 500 winners Simon Pagenaud and Ericsson.

Colton Herta was 6th fastest as he tries to get the bad taste of Indy out of his mouth. Helio Castroneves, Scott McLaughlin, Romain Grosjean, and Scott Dixon completed the top ten in practice.

Halfway through the session, Felix Rosenqvist found himself in a familiar position. His No. 7 Chevrolet was into the tire barriers after losing the back end in Turn 2. The good news is that it was a relatively minor hit, especially compared to last year when his throttle stuck and crashed hard into the concrete wall. Felix finished 4th in his first race here back in 2019 with Ganassi, and is hoping to improve upon that this Sunday with a podium finish.

There will be plenty of competition on Sunday, and no driver is more motivated than Dixon. The six-time series champion has won here three times and is itching to get his season back on track after fumbling away the Indy 500 last weekend, which he had dominated. In terms of race wins, top-fives, top-tens, poles, and laps led at Belle Isle, Dixon ranks at the very top in each category.

Another guy to keep an eye on is Graham Rahal. He is another driver that desperately needs a good finish to turn his season around. If the second-generation driver is going to do it, this is the place. Rahal swept the two races here in 2017 and ranks 2nd in top-five finishes and 3rd in laps led. His last five finishes here are 5th, 7th, 7th, 5th, and 5th. Qualifying up front is normally a key for most races, but not necessarily this one.

Fortunately for Graham and the team, their qualifying struggles may not matter this weekend. Looking at the last 16 races here, only once did the pole sitter actually win the race. That driver was Rahal. The two races last season were won from the 15th and 16th starting positions.

O'Ward is another hungry driver that will be a factor in Sunday's outcome, and he certainly knows his way around this place. Before winning the second race last year, he qualified on pole and finished on the podium in the first race. Considering how close he was to an Indy 500 victory on Sunday, he has all of the momentum on his side.

Four rookies will be making their first starts at Detroit – Kirkwood, Tatiana Calderon, Devlin DeFrancesco, and David Malukas. One driver that will not be making his debut here this weekend is rookie Callum Ilott. The Juncos Hollinger Racing driver suffered a broken hand in his crash at Indianapolis and has not been cleared to drive. The team will have Santino Ferrucci in the No. 77 Chevrolet, who recorded yet another top-ten finish in the 500 last week for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

This will be the second time this season that Santino fills in for an injured driver. Back in March he filled in for Jack Harvey at Texas, where he took the RLL Racing Honda from the 27th starting position and finished 9th. He has six starts at Belle Isle, finishing 6th and 10th in the two races last year. It is unclear if Ilott will be able to return next weekend at Road America, but Ferrucci is just thankful for the opportunity.

Chevrolet will be seeking their 100th victory on Sunday, and they would love for it to happen in their backyard. They certainly have some capable drivers like O'Ward, and the Team Penske trio of Will Power, Josef Newgarden, and McLaughlin. The latter two have won the only two street races so far this season.

There will be another one-hour practice session tomorrow morning at 8:30 ET followed by qualifying for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix at 12:35 PM on Peacock.