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INDYCAR: Busy Testing Schedules Close Out February
21 IZOD IndyCar Series drivers and one recent F1 pilot will turn laps starting this week at tracks ranging from Barber, Sebring, Phoenix, Texas and Sonoma.
Marshall Pruett  |  Posted February 18, 2012  
Lotus is scheduled to have its most active week so far with its manufacturer car and a few of its factory partners conducting tests with their respective DW12s. (Photo: LAT)
21 IZOD IndyCar Series drivers and former F1 ace Rubens Barrichello will turn laps this week on an array of road courses and ovals stretching from Florida to California.

The festivities start Monday at Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds, Ala., for a two-day test with Chevrolet- and Honda-powered teams.

After engine issues limited their running at Sebring, A.J. Foyt Racing is back for another try with Mike Conway, and Dale Coyne Racing’s Justin Wilson is expected to get his first proper turn in DCR’s car. Coyne’s James Jakes should turn his first laps with the new chassis and engine combination.

Team Penske will have Helio Castroneves and Will Power in its cars, Sam Schmidt Motorsports will be out with Simon Pagenaud and just days after its run at Fontana, Chip Ganassi Racing with have all four of its drivers--Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti, Charlie Kimball and Graham Rahal—on track.
Team Penske will cover 2000 miles as it moves from Alabama on Monday and Tuesday to California for a test Saturday and Sunday. (Photo: LAT)

The most notable item for the Barber test is the debut of Takuma Sato with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and possibly a second RLL driver.

As those six teams test a Barber, two additional teams will run concurrently on the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway oval.

Bryan Herta Autosport’s Alex Tagliani will press Lotus’ test car into service on the high banks on the 20th and 21st, while KV Racing’s Tony Kanaan is scheduled to run on Day Two before the team packs up and heads northwest to Sonoma.

A two-day short oval test kicks off on Tuesday with a pair of Chevrolet teams as Andretti Autosport’s Marco Andretti logs miles at the reconfigured one-mile Phoenix track. Panther Racing’s JR Hildebrand will join Andretti on Wednesday, after which both teams will connect with the convoy headed to Sonoma.
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Marshall Pruett

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