McLaughlin dismisses Detroit track concerns

Most of the NTT IndyCar Series field is bracing itself for a potentially eventful race on the new downtown Detroit street course Sunday, but Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin believes that fears that the race could turn into a mess are overblown.

“We'll be all right,” said the New Zealander, who qualified second in the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet. “With the track, there's been a lot of noise I've seen on Twitter, from other drivers and stuff… At the end of the day this is a new track, new complex. I think what everyone has done to get this going…the vibe is awesome. Belle Isle was getting old. We had to do it.

“Yeah, (there are) first-year problems. It's always going to happen. It's just going to get better from here. The racetrack for the drivers is a blast. We don't even know how it races yet. Everyone is making conclusions already. They probably just need to relax and wait for tomorrow.”

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Polesitter Alex Palou still needs some convincing.

“Honestly I agree with most of the drivers,” he said. “It's too tight for Indy cars. It's too short for Indy cars. There's too much traffic. It's too bumpy.

“If they were asking me, I would say, ‘Please, can we have 20 more seconds (of lap time) so it's a little bit of a longer lap, a bit wider turns. Turn 1 is really tight. They are not going to ask me, so... I'm happy wherever they take me. Obviously, I can complain a little. I'm not saying I would do a better job (at designing a track). That wouldn't be a good idea!”