After heated tempers at Mid-Ohio, Andretti gains reason to dream of pole-positioning Colton Herta in Toronto. Josef Newgarden and Scott Dixon in the hunt
If Andretti left Mid-Ohio completely hot-headed, at least the team can take a breather in Toronto. In the hands of its main driver, Colton Herta, the team scored another pole-position in the 2022 season, and tries a victory that can serve well to ease the spirits in a team that lives troubled days with internal conflicts that became public.
And the pole position could not have come from the hands of another driver. Once again. Herta put on a show on a street track. Toronto has always been a very challenging circuit, but the conditions at Exhibition Place made the mission even more difficult. It's been 3 years without competing on the track, it's the first opportunity with the aeroscreen, and a very uneven asphalt, which required several inspections over the weekend.
For everything we have seen from Herta throughout his IndyCar career, he is the favorite to win in Toronto, which doesn't mean that the mission will be easy. The uneven track conditions, the inexperience of several rookies, and the unfamiliarity of some veterans indicate that the race may be more eventful than usual in terms of yellow flags and strategy, a point that has kept Andretti out of many fights throughout 2022.
"It was an intense session, we hadn't found this time until the last moment. I'm very happy with this lap, everything went well, the car was working perfectly. You don't often see people going faster on used red tires than on new ones, so it's something to think about for tomorrow. But I'm happy with my car, it's very fast," praised Colton.
So Toronto is a litmus test for the team, which has good enough pace and condition to make Herta a winner on Sunday. It remains to resist their own demons to find Victory Lane tomorrow. Herta's main challengers include Scott Dixon and Josef Newgarden. The six-time champion has finally been Ganassi's standout in qualifying after the Indy 500, and is at a track at which he has won three times, winning the 2013 double round and also in 2018, years in which he was champion.
As for Josef Newgarden, winner in 2015 and 2017, it is not only the opportunity for another important victory in 2022, but also in growing in the championship by seeing the starting position of the opponents. Marcus Ericsson, the championship leader, starts only ninth. Pato O'Ward, Will Power and Álex Palou will need to row hard on Sunday to reduce the damage in this classification.
With a track that promises to bring a very lively Sunday, Toronto has everything to return to the Indy calendar with good stories at Exhibition Place.