NTT IndyCar Series Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama: Schedule, times, weather, entry list
IndyCar fans' six-month wait for the 2021 season to get underway will end this Sunday, Apr. 18, but they'll be watching the action unfold with a feeling of déjà vu. That's because, for the second straight year, the traditional season opener in St. Petersburg was skipped because of COVID-19 concerns.
Last season, America’s premier single-seater racing series had to scramble to put together a makeshift schedule. There was just one adjustment this time around: IndyCar moved St. Petersburg to Race No. 2, and the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park will run as scheduled.
So will the rest of the 17-race calendar.
One of the big storylines leading up to the IndyCar opener will be the open-wheel debut of future NASCAR Hall of Famer Jimmie Johnson. The California native will be piloting his familiar No. 48 for Chip Ganassi Racing, but instead of being in a Chevrolet stock car, he will steer a Dallara IR-12 Honda chassis.
Johnson, 45, will handle every IndyCar road and street course - 13 in all - while series veteran Tony Kanaan will drive the car on the four ovals. Kanaan will be the oldest and most experienced active IndyCar racer this season. Johnson’s teammate Scott Dixon has made 272 consecutive starts heading into the weekend - the second-longest streak in IndyCar. Kanaan holds the mark at 318, which ended last year.
Will Power, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud and Takuma Sato are the only entered drivers who have wins at Barber Motorsports Park. Kanaan, Graham Rahal, Dixon, Hunter-Reay and Sato have started every IndyCar race at Barber.
Sato won at Barber two seasons ago, which makes him the defending champion since IndyCar canceled the 2020 event due to the pandemic. The Japanese driver also won the NTT P1 Award at 1:08.5934 / 120.711 mph
Read more IndyCar: Two-time IndyCar champ Josef Newgarden tops 226 mph in Indy 500 test
Here's all you need to know about the 2021 IndyCar Series Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama:
INDYCAR RACE NUMBER: No. 1 of 17
WHAT: Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama
WHERE: Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Alabama
WHEN: Sunday, April 18 at 2:42 p.m.
TV/RADIO: NBC, Sirius 211, XM 205, indycar.com, and the INDYCAR Mobile app
TRACK SIZE: 2.3-mile, 17-turn road course (clockwise)
RACE LENGTH: 90 laps / 207 miles
TIRE ALLOTMENT: Six sets primary, four sets alternate, one additional set available for rookies for use in first practice.
PUSH TO PASS PARAMETERS: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation.
INDYCAR WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 17
10-10:45 a.m.: IndyCar practice #1, Peacock Premium
1:40-2:25 p.m.: IndyCar practice #2, Peacock Premium
4:55-6:10 p.m.: Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama qualifying (Three rounds of knockout qualifications), Peacock Premium (live), NBCSN (Tape delayed at 10 p.m. ET). Sebastien Bourdais holds the qualifying record at 1:06.6001, 124.324 mph, on April 23, 2016.
6:15 p.m.: NTT P1 Award Presentation (pit lane)
Sunday, April 18
10:30-11 a.m.: IndyCar warmup, Peacock Premium
2:00 p.m.: NBC on air
2:35 p.m.: “Drivers, start your engines”
2:42 p.m.: Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama (90 laps/207 miles), NBC (live)
WEATHER
Saturday: Showers in the morning, then cloudy in the afternoon. High 67F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Sunday: Partly to mostly cloudy. High 69F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.
TRACK HISTORY
FIRST INDYCAR RACE: April 11, 2010. Winner: Helio Castroneves
OWNER: Barber Motorsports Park
INDYCAR ENTRY LIST
Car Number / Driver
2 Josef Newgarden
3 Scott McLaughlin (R)
4 Dalton Kellett
5 Pato O'Ward
7 Felix Rosenqvist
8 Marcus Ericsson
9 Scott Dixon
10 Alex Palou
12 Will Power
14 Sebastien Bourdais
15 Graham Rahal
18 Ed Jones
20 Conor Daly
21 Rinus Veekay
22 Simon Pagenaud
26 Colton Herta
27 Alexander Rossi
28 Ryan Hunter-Reay
29 James Hinchcliffe
30 Takuma Sato
48 Jimmie Johnson (R)
51 Romain Grosjean (R)
59 Max Chilton
60 Jack Harvey