MotoGP stars
Colin Edwards and
Nicky Hayden were present at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway last weekend to watch
NASCAR - and also discussed the final turn of the new road course, which they will race on during the inaugural
Indianapolis Grand Prix on September 14.
The recent
MotoGP test session saw concerns raised over grip levels - which officials are confident will improve with increased track use - and the layout of the final turn, where the reconfigured road course joins the famous oval's home straight by means of a fast right-left chicane.
As riders accelerate through the left-hand exit and onto the main straight they are sent close to the outside retaining wall, on their right hand side, before straightening up. Edwards indicated that the angle of the corner might need to be changed while Hayden, who has ridden the circuit on a road bike, felt it is acceptable.
"By the time you get to accelerating and get out toward the curb, you're going to be well over 100 mph, and that wall comes up pretty tight," the
Indianapolis Star reports Edwards as saying. "But that's something that can always be changed during the [race] weekend if some guys have a problem with it. It's better to be safe than sorry."
Racing on a road course inside an oval is commonplace in America and Edwards added "it was always an issue coming onto the straight with the banking."
Hayden however believes that the Indy turn doesn't present a big problem since the amount of banking at the point of transition from road course to oval is relatively low.
"Daytona is really bad because you actually use part of the oval [corner]... but that won't be a problem here," he said. "The banking is not that steep."
The
Indianapolis NASCAR race, held on the oval course, was blighted by excessive tyre wear problems, prompting an apology to fans by senior
NASCAR officials.
