TORONTO — Takuma Sato’s third practice round time on Saturday at the Honda Indy Toronto was below the track record.
His lap of 58.6777 seconds was better than Simon Pagenaud’s qualifying time of 58.9124 set on July 15, 2017.
Pagenaud’s record is vulnerable because the current track configuration at Exhibition Place was created for last year’s race.
Josef Newgarden (58.7750), Will Power (58.8758) and Alexander Rossi (58.8997) also had practice rounds better than Pagenaud’s 2017 time, but a track record can only be set in qualifying or an actual race, so they don’t count.
Robert Wickens of Guelph, Ont., was seventh with a lap of 59.0128.
James Hinchcliffe of Oakville, Ont., was 14th with a time of 59.3569.
Wickens crashed at the eighth turn, wedging the front of his car under a tire barrier. Newgarden then skidded in behind him sideways.
The ensuing red flag brought an end to the practice session that was already in its dying seconds.