“The car felt very unsettled in the corners and it took me a while to find the confidence to go flat," the 24-year said, admitting that it had been hard to adjust to her first few oval laps, "but, once we mastered this, I really enjoyed it. It knocks the breath out of you – I had to remind myself to breathe, which sounds stupid, but it's true!”

“It is also one thing being able to turn laps on your own, but running in traffic will be a totally different experience. However, it was a really positive day for us in Miami, and I'm looking forward to my next run.”

Leimer, meanwhile, followed in the recent successful footsteps of fellow FMaster graduates Chris van der Drift and Earl Bamber by going fastest at Kentucky in his first outing in an Indy Lights car. The 19-year old joined Sam Schmidt Motorsports and quickly proved his potential by reaching top speeds of 305km/h before ending the day ahead of the assorted experience of Kimball, Hinchcliffe, Saavedra and Bonanomi. Continuing the theme established at Homestead, Leimer's fastest times were a tenth quicker that this year's Lights' pole at Kentucky, and two tenths faster than any other drivers taking part in the test.