2023 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland

Race Notes

• The 2023 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland was 110 laps on the 1.964-mile Portland International Raceway road course totaling 216.04 miles. The pit road speed limit was 45 mph and the race started the third time by the start-finish line. Pole sitter Graham Rahal gridded drivers' right.
• All cars but those of Rahal, Scott McLaughlin, Colton Herta, Callum Ilott, Alexader Rossi, Marcus Ericsson, Rinus VeeKay, Marcus Armstrong, Kyle Kirkwood, Juri Vips, Devlin DeFrancesco, Sting Ray Robb and Ryan Hunter-Reay started the race on Firestone Firehawk primary black tires. Each car was required to use one set of new alternate red tires and one set of primary black tires during the race.
• At 12:20 p.m. PDT, 10 minutes before the green flag, the ambient temperature in Portland waas 68 degrees with 74% humidity and cloudy skies. The track temperature was 81 degrees according to Firestone engineers.
• At 12:23 p.m., BitNile.com founder Todd Ault gave the command, "Drivers, start your engines." All cars were running and rolled off the grid.
• On Lap 1, Rahal led the field out of Turn 12 past the start-finish line. While the field made through Turn 1, the No. 28 Andretti Autosport Honda of Romain Grosjean was slow on course with left-front damage.
• On Lap 3, the race's first full-course caution period began when the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet of Will Power went off course in Turn 4. Leaders at the time of the caution were Rahal, McLaughlin, Alex Palou, Herta and Scott Dixon.
• David Malukas, Kyle Kirkwood, Hunter-Reay and Robb pitted under caution on Lap 4.
• Rahal led the field on the Lap 6 restart and led until his first pit stop on Lap 22. Palou became the race leader after Rahal's stop.
• On Lap 31, Palou pitted and handed the lead to teammate Dixon. Dixon then pitted from the lead on Lap 32 allowing Malukas to lead until Lap 34, when Palou reassumed the race lead.
• Palou went on to lead until his second pit stop on Lap 48 which returned the race lead to Dixon.
• Dixon next pitted on Lap 60 which put Palou back out front until Lap 79, giving Dixon another brief stint out front until his next pit stop on Lap 81.
• A local yellow for the No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet of Agustin Canapino off course in Turn 12 allowed both Malukas and Rosenqvist to pit prior to a full-course caution, which was called on Lap 84. The timing meant that Rosenqvist's out lap was under caution, allowing the Arrow McLaren driver to restart ahead of Dixon.
• Palou led Rosenqvist on the Lap 88 restart and had a 2.5706-second lead on Lap 100.
• Palou took the white flag with a 5.3639-second advantage over Rosenqvist.
• On Lap 110, Palou crossed the finish line first to win his fifth race of 2023 and the ninth race of his NTT IndyCar Series career. The result also clinched his second series championship, relegating teammate Scott Dixon to second place.
• Unofficial points after the BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland:
  1. Palou 618
  2. Dixon 527 (-91)
  3. Newgarden 470 (-148)
  4. O'Ward 461 (-157)
  5. McLaughlin 448 (-170)
  6. Ericsson 423 (-195)
  7. Power 393 (-225)
  8. Lundgaard 362 (-256)
     

Session Notes

• Final practice for the 2023 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland started on time at 5:15 p.m. PDT and ran for its full 30-minute duration.
• The session had no significant on-track incidents and was not interrupted by any red flags.
• At the conclusion of final practice, Josef Newgarden was fastest with a lap time of 59.4533 seconds in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet.
  

Qualifying Notes

• Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award consists of three segments. In the first round, each group receives 10 minutes of track time with the clock starting when the first car hits the alternate start-finish line. The fastest six cars from each group advance to Round 2 while the remaining cars are assigned positions 13 to 27. Group 1 drivers will occupy the odd-numbered positions while Group 2 drivers will occupy the even-numbered positions based on their fastest lap times. During Round 2, the 12 advancing cars receive 10 minutes of track time with the fastest six cars advancing to the Firestone Fast Six while the remaining cars are ranked in positions seven through 12 based on their fastest laps. During the Firestone Fast Six, the six cars receive six minutes of guaranteed green-flag time. At the end of session, cars are ranked one through six based on their fastest laps.
• The first round of qualifying was without incident, with both groups completing their 10-minute sessions under green-flag conditions.
• During Round 2, the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet of Josef Newgarden made contact with the tire barrier in Turn 11. The red flag was nine minutes in duration and the session clock was stopped during that time. It resumed with seven minutes remaining. Newgarden was later seen and released from the IU Health INDYCAR Medical Unit. He was penalized his two fastest laps and was not able to finish the session or advance to the Firestone Fast Six.
• Scott McLaughlin, Colton Herta, Pato O'Ward, Scott Dixon, Alex Palou and Graham Rahal advanced to the third round of qualifying.
• At the conclusion of Round 3, Graham Rahal's lap time of 58.3195 seconds secured the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver his second NTT P1 Award of 2023 and the fifth pole of his NTT IndyCar Series career. His last season with two poles was 2009 with poles at St. Petersburg and Kansas.
  

Session Notes

• The second practice session for the 2023 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland started on time at 9 a.m. PDT and ran for its full 45-minute duration within a one-hour window.
• At the start of Practice 2, the ambient temperature was 67 degrees with mostly cloudy skies. The track temperature was 74 degrees according to Firestone engineers.
• The session was slowed by one red flag. At 9:31 a.m., the No. 51 Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda of Sting Ray Robb was stopped off course in Turn 7. The driver was penalized five minutes of practice time for causing the red flag condition.
• At the conclusion of Practice 2, Scott McLaughlin was fastest with a lap time of 58.1516 seconds in the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet.
  

Session Notes

• The first practice session for the 2023 BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland started on time at 3 p.m. PDT and ran for its full 75-minute duration.
• At the start of Practice 1, the ambient temperature was 78 degrees with partly cloudy skies. The track temperature was 107 degrees according to Firestone engineers.
• The session was slowed by three red flags:
  • At 3:18 p.m., the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet of Felix Rosenqvist went off course and made light contact with the barrier in Turn 12.
  • At 3:30 p.m., the No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet of Santino Ferrucci was stopped on course in Turn 7 after a spin.
  • At 3:41 p.m., the No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet of Ryan-Hunter Reay spun after exiting Turn 12 and was in need of assistance.
• All three drivers were assessed five-minute time penalties for causing red flags.
• At the conclusion of Practice 1, Christian Lundgaard was fastest with a lap time of 58.1776 seconds in the No. 45 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda.