Lundgaard set to defend Honda Indy title as drivers hit track with new hybrid tech

TORONTO (AP) — Denmark’s Christian Lundgaard didn’t get the chance to celebrate his first career NTT IndyCar Series victory last year in Toronto.

The Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver was pulled in the middle of his post-race press conference, needing to catch a flight home. And so, in November, he made a point of returning by intentionally booking a flight home through the Ontario capital.

The 22-year-old wanted to see the street track in its natural form, free of the race weekend buildout. He said it was “a little odd” — mostly, he just saw cars lined up in traffic.

Now, he’s back in Toronto, where he’s set to defend his title.

“It brings back a lot of good memories,” Lundgaard said Friday. “But it also brings pressure. Of course, we want to perform at the same level as we did last year.”

Qualifying for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto begins Saturday, which will determine pole position and the starting order for Sunday’s 85-lap race through Exhibition Place and Lakeshore Boulevard.

And a race already known for its unpredictability has introduced a new element.

Toronto marks the 13th stop of the 2024 NTT IndyCar Series. But it’s the first street race in which drivers will be operating hybrid powertrains, which were introduced to the circuit just two weeks ago in mid-Ohio.

Lundgaard, who ranks 13th on the grid, said there may be a small learning curve, but he’s confident given he placed 17th in practice last year in Toronto before ultimately winning from pole.

“I think with the hybrid this year, a lot of us are going to spend time trying to figure out how to utilize it, but at the same time it’s about having the car in the right window,” Lundgaard said.

Alex Palou, the Spaniard from Chip Ganassi Racing and current season-long points leader, placed second last year despite starting in 15th, while American Colton Herta of Andretti rounded out the podium after starting in 14th.

Three-time Toronto champion Will Power, who is also in the field, sits 35 points behind Palou in the standings following his win last week during the second race in Iowa.

Power, a 43-year-old Australian, agreed with Lundgaard that the biggest adjustment with the hybrids will be their strategic use.

“It’s still worth three-tenths (of a second), which is 10 spots in this series, so if it didn’t work, or if you didn’t use it properly, it’ll cost you dearly,” Power said.

No Canadians are set to race their home track this season. Toronto’s Devlin DeFrancesco placed 23rd last year but is off the IndyCar grid this season.

Toronto remains the lone international stop of the IndyCar season, something Power said he’d like to see change in the future.

“The fans are very passionate here. We usually get a big crowd,” Power said. “I wish we had a Canadian driver in the field, because that makes a difference, but I feel like we should have more races in Canada. I’m always pushing for Montreal and we used to go to Edmonton. They’re always great races for us.”

Sting Ray Robb, the American who drives for A.J. Foyt Racing, appeared at risk of missing the Toronto event after a scary crash last week in Iowa in which he passed out on impact.

However, Robb emerged relatively unscathed with a burnt finger that is already nearly fully healed.

“I should be a lot worse than I am,” he said.

Robb added that he was happy he was able to make it to Canada, and that he keeps ties here as his driver coach coming up was from Vancouver.

“I’d like to see more international races on the schedule in the future, but for now this is good enough," Robb said.

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing