Dixon tops opening practice at Iowa

Target Chip Ganassi drivers Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon led the way before rain shortened the day, turning laps in excess of 180 mph. Dixon was clocked at 17.6006 seconds (182.857 mph) in the No. 9 Ganassi Honda/Dallara, while Wheldon was second-fastest in the No. 10 Ganassi entry at 182.129 mph.

"The first time we tested here, we came here with a car that was heavy on downforce and a little slower and easier to drive," Dixon said. "Today was different. It was definitely fast for such a small track. We were flat out. It was a lot of fun. We could run close to other cars, and there's tons of grip."

Teams and drivers practiced only about 90 minutes before a thunderstorm ended the day prematurely. Cars are expected back on the track Saturday for more practice and qualifying, with the race set for Sunday at noon ET.

While drivers marveled at the speed, they weren't quite sure that the new track will develop an outside line for Sunday's Iowa Corn Indy 250. "It is very difficult to pass, so qualifying and pit stops are going to be extremely important," Wheldon said. "I certainly think you'll see qualifying speeds around 180, which is plenty quick for a track of this size."

Pos  Driver              Time             Speed
 1.  Scott Dixon         17.6006          182.857
 2.  Dan Wheldon         17.6710 +0.0704  182.129
 3.  Sam Hornish Jr      17.6712 +0.0706  182.127
 4.  Helio Castroneves   17.6874 +0.0868  181.960
 5.  Marco Andretti      17.6963 +0.0957  181.869
 6.  Dario Franchitti    17.7231 +0.1225  181.594
 7.  Buddy Rice          17.7563 +0.1557  181.254
 8.  Tomas Scheckter     17.7662 +0.1656  181.153
 9.  Ed Carpenter        17.7674 +0.1668  181.141
10.  Jeff Simmons        17.7872 +0.1866  180.939
11.  Danica Patrick      17.7979 +0.1973  180.830
12.  Tony Kanaan         17.8230 +0.2224  180.576
13.  Scott Sharp         17.8435 +0.2429  180.368
14.  AJ Foyt IV          17.8604 +0.2598  180.198
15.  Darren Manning      17.9379 +0.3373  179.419
16.  Sarah Fisher        17.9702 +0.3696  179.097
17.  Vitor Meira         17.9979 +0.3973  178.821
18.  Kosuke Matsuura     18.1545 +0.5539  177.278
19.  Milka Duno          18.7656 +1.1650  171.505