Long Beach IndyCar: Scott Dixon and Ryan Hunter-Reay top practice – IndyCar

Chip Ganassi Racing’s five-time and reigning champion Scott Dixon led Friday afternoon IndyCar practice in Long Beach, beating morning pacesetter Ryan Hunter-Reay by 0.0494 seconds.

Andretti Autosport driver Hunter-Reay had led Dixon by 0.1704s as he topped the opening session and went fastest again on the harder tyres in the first 20 minutes of practice two.

Championship leading Penske driver Josef Newgarden then eclipsed Hunter-Reay when he became the first driver to lay down a fast lap on the softer tyres.

Hunter-Reay responded but was beaten by Dixon’s 1m07.7940s in the dying seconds of the session.

Hunter-Reay clung on to second, but was only 0.0433sec ahead of rookie Felix Rosenqvist in the second Ganassi car.

Newgarden was top Chevrolet runner in fourth ahead of Carlin Racing’s Patricio O’Ward, who was within a quarter-second of Dixon’s pacesetting lap.

Last year’s Long Beach race winner Alexander Rossi clocked sixth fastest time ahead of Graham Rahal, who escaped a spin.

Simon Pagenaud was eighth, followed by 2017 race winner James Hinchcliffe (pictured) of Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and Marco Andretti.

Tony Kanaan was an encouraging 12th, but his AJ Foyt Racing team-mate Matheus Leist stopped on track at Turn 9 – bringing out a red flag and receiving a five-minute penalty.

Will Power was only 15th fastest in the third Penske Dallara-Chevrolet.

Austin race winner Colton Herta had been third in first practice and was 13th in the afternoon.

Practice one times

Practice two times