Franchitti sets Phoenix pace

Franchitti posted a lap of 176.889mph, just slightly better than Scott Dixon's lap of 176.665mph in the afternoon session. Helio Castroneves had the best lap of the day - 177.257mph - during a crash-interrupted morning session. For Franchitti, who hasn't raced since he finished fourth last June at Colorado Springs, Wednesday's laps were his first on a short track in nearly eight months.

"It's been a long time since I've been on a one-mile oval," said Franchitti. "Things come at you pretty quickly. It took me a couple of laps to get into it this morning. I got to know the car and felt out the track and then just worked on setup. I'm pretty happy with it."

Also pleased was Castroneves, who bruised a knee during a crash last weekend while practicing for the IROC race at Daytona.

"I tried to go like the good old boys there, but I guess I wasn't very good," said Castroneves. "I just lost it. I tried to overcorrect. I thought I got it, but I didn't get it. I banged my knee on the steering column, but I'm OK. We're going back for more."

It was the first open test for IRL cars on the new configuration at PIR. The one-mile track's notorious outcrop wall - the product of a crossover opening in Turn Two - has been moved back. The backstretch dogleg is less pronounced, and 1,400 feet of SAFER barrier has been added to the wall. PIR also added a drive-through tunnel and removed a pedestrian bridge that spanned Turn Four.

The morning session, which was delayed by 30 minutes because of cold temperatures, was marred by four incidents. The most serious sent Dreyer & Reinbold Racing back to Indianapolis to repair Robbie Buhl's Chevrolet-powered Dallara. Buhl struck the wall in Turn Four, causing extensive damage to the back of the car. Buhl was not injured.

Scott Sharp, Tora Takagi and Darren Manning also brought out yellow flags during the morning session. Sharp spun out and didn't make contact with the wall, but Takagi and Manning did, causing minor damage. All three drivers returned to the track later in the day.