"It’s a different emotion" - IndyCar rookie Robert Shwartzman makes feeling known after first oval test at Nashville

PREMA Racing's Robert Shwartzman recently came out and reflected on the Nashville test as he detailed what it felt like to drive around an oval in the American open-wheel racing car for the first time. The former Ferrari Academy driver took to the oval circuit in Nashville for the IndyCar test on March 26.

Robert Shwartzman signed with PREMA Racing ahead of the 2025 season as the Italian team made its debut in the IndyCar series. The Russian-Israeli driver made his debut at the 2025 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and had previously participated in multiple IndyCar tests.

However, driving an IndyCar around an oval requires a special skill set, one that is completely different from driving on road courses. Shwartzman had the know-how of driving an open-wheel car around a road/street circuit, but not around an oval, and hence the Nashville test was crucial.

INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Source: Getty

Detailing the IndyCar oval test, Robert Shwartzman highlighted his emotions during the same. He said via IndyCar,

“The beginning was tricky to get to know the car on the oval for my brain to cooperate at those speeds that I’m going in the corner at like 200 mph. It’s interesting to get a bit of that feeling that the car is going to stay there; you can do it. Lap by lap, I managed to get there.”

“I have to say the first feeling was very different to anything I’ve driven until now. It’s a different emotion, different G forces, which was kind of fun.Overall, I’m happy with how it went as we did consistent laps, good runs, which now have given me a decent baseline knowledge about what to expect and how this car feels on an oval,” he added

Robert Shwartzman completed a total of 168 laps around the 1.330-mile Superspeedway. Louis Foster also joined the PREMA driver at the test, as it is a prerequisite for the rookies to participate in an oval test for the Indy 500. Jacob Abel participated in the oval test around Texas Motor Speedway last year.

PREMA CEO hails the team following the fire mishap with Robert Shwartzman's car

Robert Shwartzman's PREMA caught on fire during the first practice session at the Thermal Club. The 25-year-old driver successfully escaped the car, but the team was left with a completely burnt car. The team had to fall back on the reserve car, as Shwartzman missed out on the second practice session. However, the car was ready for qualifying, but with no laps under the belt, the former Ferrari test driver qualified dead last.

Nonetheless, PREMA CEO Piers Phillips hailed the team's effort to get the car up and running, as he said via IndyCar,

“I think that shows how the group operates, the camaraderie and the togetherness.”

“I was really pleased, because obviously, for a lot of people, it's the first time they've done this. The attitude, the energy, the kind of upbeat vibe that, yes, there's a few tired people, but everyone's still up for the fight,” he added

Shwartzman finished a respectable P22 after starting dead last at Thermal Club. His teammate Callum Ilott had a race to forget as he finished in P26.