Welcome to the Big Machine Music City GP
Welcome to Nashville and the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix. We are in the media center located in the bowels of Nissan Stadium, hone of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans. Shortly after we arrived, Dario Franchitti drove the Corvette Pace Car leading a ceremonial opening lap featuring hometown driver Josef Newgarden and Scott Dixon. These were the first laps ever taken by racing machines on this track.
The bridge looked plenty wide enough, but the sections around Turns Five and Six sure looked tight. If a car has a mishap in that section, it certainly has the potential to cause a blockage.
As I type, the Trans Am cars are on track and sure enough, a car went off in that area and the practice was red flagged.It was nothing major, but it looked as if there was not a ton of rom around it. That section of the track on the west side of the river will be worth keeping an eye on this weekend.
Worlds are colliding for us this weekend. Since the Titans moved into Nissan Stadium in 1999, we have probably been to over eighty games in this stadium. In that same time period, we have probably been to as many IndyCar race weekends, if you count Indianapolis 500 qualifying. It’s almost surreal that we are covering an IndyCar race at this stadium, as my two passions have collided into this venue. Add to the fact that we didn’t pack luggage and we get to sleep in our own bed each night – it is bordering on the bizarro world.
We are now going to explore what are normally familiar surroundings, but have been transformed into something very unfamiliar this weekend. The Indy cars are on track at 3:10 local time (CDT). I may or not be back here befpre then, but I will certainly be here afterward for a Friday wrap-up.
In the meantime, please follow both of us on Twitter for instant photos, videos and comments. You can follow me at @Oilpressureblog, or Susan at @MrsOilpressure. Please check back later.
George Phillips
Oilpressure 
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