Gateway 500 qualifying postponed to Sunday due to rain and lightning

IndyCar

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Qualifying for the IndyCar Gateway 500 has been postponed after persistent rain fell at the oval on Saturday.

All on-track activity from Gateway Motorsports Park was delayed indefinitely due to a heavy rain and lightning strikes near the circuit. While the lightning hold lifted, the rainfall did not abate in time for IndyCar’s scheduled qualifying session to proceed today as planned.

The session, which was originally scheduled for 1pm CT (local time), will instead be held Sunday at 10am CT/4pm BST. The green flag for tomorrow’s 260-lap race scheduled for that afternoon at 2:30pm CT/8:30pm BST.

The grid will be set tomorrow based upon the cumulative average time and speed over a two-lap, single-car time attack for each driver.

IndyCar will also introduce the distinctive ‘primary’ and ‘alternate’ compounds to a short oval for the first time this year. All teams will be required to start the race on the harder, primary compound tyres and they must use one set of the softer, alternate tyre during the race.

Practice for IndyCar will take place throughout tonight, starting with a one-hour practice session, followed by an optional 30-minute “high-line” session for teams to lay down rubber on the outside groove of the track in a bid to encourage more overtaking in the race.

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RJ O'Connell
Motorsport has been a lifelong interest for RJ, both virtual and ‘in the carbon’, since childhood. RJ picked up motorsports writing as a hobby...

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