That's because two days of running were scheduled for this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.439-mile road course layout with Ed Carpenter Racing's Alexander Rossi jumping in the cockpit Saturday.There's a lot of work to be done before the IR-28 and its accompanying refreshed engines from Chevrolet and Honda hit the series in 2028, but Rossi said after spending Saturday in the car that he was impressed by the preparation that went into getting it ready for a shakedown.CLICK HERE FOR MORE OUTKICK SPORTS COVERAGE"I’ve been a part of some new car launches before, and I can’t say that any have gone as smooth as this one has," Rossi said, per IndyCar.com."That’s down to everyone involved.
We’ve all been waiting for this for a long time.Drivers, fans, teams, sponsors and all of you have been looking forward to it, and now it’s finally here."It’s like Christmas morning."Ed Carpenter Racing's Alexander Rossi was the first to give the new IndyCar IR-28 chassis a try before it debuts in 2028.
(Photo by Michael L.Levitt/Lumen via Getty Images)Unfortunately, the weather wasn't super cooperative, and that limited some of Rossi's track time, but he still got a taste for some of the difference coming the series' way in about a year and a half."It's hard to do a full comparison because of the conditions we were dealing with, but everything you could hope for from a day like today was accomplished," he said.
"The fact that the car is completely new and the only real issue we had was replacing one sensor is phenomenal.That’s a huge testament to Dallara, IndyCar and everyone involved."The car has a lot of incredible qualities that we haven’t even scratched the surface of yet.
It was an incredible start and just a joy to drive."ZERO BS.JUST DAKICH.
TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD.DOWNLOAD NOW!The current IndyCar chassis, the Dallara DW12, has seen some changes but has been in use since 2012.
(Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Imag...