THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
INDIANAPOLIS — The final practice for the Indianapolis 500 was a lot like the rest of the month at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: cold, wet and short.
What was supposed to be an hour of final tune-ups before Sunday’s race was stopped by rain Friday after only 12 minutes, and the annual pit stop competition among top contenders’ crews was cancelled altogether.
Former winner Buddy Rice had the most laps of any driver, managing 11 trips around the 2.5-mile oval, while Ganassi Racing teammates Dan Wheldon and pole-starter Scott Dixon had six laps each and turned in the top speeds at 223.934 and 223.028 m.p.h., respectively.
Bruno Junqueira and Tomas Scheckter completed just one lap, while Ryan Briscoe was the only one of the 33 starters who did not get a single lap before the rain hit.
Still, the limited practice went well, Rice said.
"I was able to get our car up to speed quickly," the 2004 winner said. "The track was very green, no rubber on it from the rain. The downforce was heavy due to the cooler conditions."
Rice’s top lap was at 221.207 m.p.h.
The latest weather forecast for Sunday called for zero per cent chance of rain and a high temperature of 24 C.
"That might make it very difficult on the teams and drivers to get the right setup," Rice said. "Luckily, we have an experienced engineering staff, and we’ll prepare for that kind of day. Right now, I’m very pleased with our car."