Five-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou stepped into unfamiliar territory on Friday, but the end result looked remarkably familiar.
Climbing into an Indy NXT car for the very first time, Palou paced a 22-car field at the annual Chris Griffis Memorial Test on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Driving the #11 Chip Ganassi Racing entry on an overcast, chilly day in Central Indiana, Palou posted the day's fastest lap at 1 minute, 14.5050 seconds around the 2.439-mile, 14-turn layout. The test honors the memory of Chris Griffis, the former Schmidt Peterson Motorsports team manager who passed away suddenly in September 2011.