IndyCar Laguna Seca: McLaughlin leads in practice after red flagged session

Scott McLaughlin stood at the top of the timing boards ahead of Colton Herta after the first practice session of the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey.

The IndyCar session is fast approaching its halfway mark, as the American single-seater series heads to Monterey for the ninth race of the 18-race season.

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The session wasn’t without issues, as drivers contended with low grip levels out on the Californian circuit. As a result, red flags were brought out by David Malukas and Pato O’Ward.

In the first session of the session, David Malukas returned to the sport with his new team, Meyer Shank Racing, whereas Nolan Siegel made his full-time debut following his promotion to IndyCar.

Moments from Monterey 😎⁰⁰#INDYCAR // #FirestoneGP pic.twitter.com/Fn43lbRtGR

— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) June 22, 2024

How Monterey practice ended...

McLaughlin left it until the dying moments of the session before he put the fastest lap on the board, a 1:07.6325. The New Zealander also clocked a blistering speed of 119.126mph - the fastest of the session.

Herta and Alex Palou completed the top three in second and third respectively, leaving Josef Newgarden and Pietro Fittipaldi to round out the top five.

McLaughlin said: “Pretty good day in the Good Ranchers Chevy, The car was pretty hooked up from the get-go, and it really got on reds when we turned it on. The track’s getting faster and faster, and I think it’s sort of coming to our car a little bit. More to come tomorrow.”

O’Ward, Kyle Kirkwood, Alexander Rossi, and Marcus Armstrong completed the session in order of sixth to ninth whilst the championship leader, Will Power, rounded out the top 10.

Both Malukas and O’Ward brought out the red flags as both drivers spun out on track. Malukas, in his return, was the first red flag - down at turn two - while O’Ward brought out the second later on when he spun off into the gravel at turn five.

In his first full-time seat with Arrow McLaren, Siegel stood as the slowest driver out on track as the debutant finished 27th with a lap time that was just under three seconds slower than McLaughlin.

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