Siegel leads for Arrow McLaren in second Long Beach practice

It was a celebration of Californian IndyCar talent Saturday morning at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach as Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel and Andretti Global’s Colton Herta were the fastest drivers during the cool and overcast run ahead of qualifying.

Siegel, born and raised six hours north in Palo Alto, was quickest — the first time in his young career — with a lap of 1m07.1169s in the No. 6 Chevy; Herta, from less than an hour away in Santa Clarita, was second with a 1m07.1648s in the No. 26 Honda.

Like Siegel, another young talent in rookie Louis Foster from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing stood out in the second session by running third with a 1m07.2093s in the No. 45 Honda.

The only significant dramas were found with Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, the defending race winner, whose No. 9 Honda met the wall with the right-side wheels and suffered damage to the car’s floor as well which will need to be replaced in time for qualifying later this afternoon.