ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Two of the top three drivers in Friday’s NTT IndyCar Series practice session at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg could use a rebound weekend.

Both Josef Newgarden of Team Penske and Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport were involved in the multi-car crash at the start of last Sunday’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Both drivers are expected to challenge for the championship, but left Barber Motorsports Park deep in the hole.

Newgarden was unable to return to the race and finished 23rd, but Herta was able to complete 25 laps and finished 22nd.

Friday on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., Newgarden was the fastest driver at 1:00.8029 around the 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street course in the No. 2 Hitachi Chevrolet for Team Penske. Teammate Will Power was second at 1:00.8102 in the No. 12 Team Verizon Chevrolet for Team Penske followed by Herta’s No. 26 Honda at 1:00.8348.

“What we are struggling with now is getting the tires up to temperature, but the track should rubber up,” Newgarden said afterwards. “It’s still hot in that cockpit, though. It was definitely an eye-opener to see how warm it is here.”

A good finish can help both Newgarden and Herta refocus their efforts for the rest of the season.

“I’m not even thinking about the points because it’s so early,” Newgarden said. “I think as far as the championship goes; I don’t know how people look at that at the moment. We want to have a solid weekend. It’s a shame that I affected other people’s races, like Colton’s. We just want to get back on track.

“It was a big gut punch just to be out so quick. It was a bad combination of a couple of different factors and next thing I knew; I was in trouble. We haven’t started our season yet. I want to get going and get ready for Sunday.”

Herta believes the tightness of the 24-car field will make Saturday’s qualifications a challenge.

“It feels pretty good, the car is really good, it’s a little difficult to get a clean lap around here, so that should be interesting,” Herta said. “We rolled off the truck good. It’s one of the most competitive fields we’ve ever had. We can’t make the same mistake at all.

“We have to keep our nose clean in qualifying.”

Andretti Autosport teammate Alexander Rossi was fourth in a Honda at 1:00.8653 followed by Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud in a Chevrolet at 1:00.8992.

Six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon was sixth at 1:00.9152.

The one-hour session was held without any incidents, other than a spin by Felix Rosenqvist.

“It’s such a hyper-competitive field we have this year, the top 18 is within a second-and-a-half and the rest following aren’t that far behind,” Herta said.

IndyCar is in the middle of a four-race stretch in 14 days that began with last Sunday’s season-opener at Barber, followed by St. Petersburg this Sunday and will continue with a doubleheader at Texas Motor Speedway next Saturday and Sunday.

“We need to stay focused throughout that,” Newgarden said. “Not a lot of time to rest. We must maximize the short window. It’s important, for sure.”