Fernando Alonso Completes Rookie Orientation at Indy

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief

Two-time Formula One World Champion Fernando Alonso has completed his Rookie Orientation Program for the 101^st Running of the Indianapolis presented by PennGrade Motor Oil.

The 35-year-old Spaniard took on three phases of ROP with a total of 50 laps and ran a best time of 40.9735 seconds (219.654 mph) around the 2.5-mile oval.

The program for incoming rookies consists of 40 laps that run as follows:

• Phase 1 is 10 laps over 210 mph.
• Phase 2 is 15 laps over 215 mph.
• Phase 3 is 15 laps over 220 mph.

Marco Andretti did a shakedown of the No. 29 McLaren Honda Andretti entry to get a comfortable balance on the car prior to handing it off to Alonso.

The 32-time Grand Prix winner will take on an additional practice day on May 15 for a rookie session before official practice for the Indianapolis 500 gets underway.

A solid first impression for Alonso at Indianapolis as continued testing will happen following a brief break, but the overall test day is expected to be cut slightly short with weather looming.

Fans can view the test at racecontrol.indycar.com.