Power emerges as Indy 500 pole favorite
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio
Team Penske’s Will Power will continue his pursuit of an elusive Indianapolis 500 pole when Day 2 qualifying for the 108th running of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” resumes Sunday afternoon.
Will Power – Indianapolis 500 Qualifying – (Photo by Joe Skibinski | IMS Photo)
Power, winner of the 2018 Indy 500, teammate/reigning Indy 500 champion Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin finished 1-2-3 at the end of Saturday’s opening session of PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Positions 13-30 in the traditional 33-car field have been locked-in via four-lap/10-mile qualifying runs, with the Penske threesome among 12 drivers who will compete for the NTT P1 Award today.
A two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, Power posted the fastest four-lap average at 233.758 mph in the No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet. Fellow two-time series champ Newgarden was second at 233.332 mph in the No. 2 Shell Powering Progress Team Penske Chevrolet, while Scott McLaughlin was third at 233.293 mph in the No. 3 Pennzoil “Yellow Submarine” Team Penske Chevrolet.
Will Power – 2024 Indianapolis 500 Qualification Photo. Photo by John Cote
Power is INDYCAR’s all-time pole-winner with 70 _ a staggering figure that does not include the Indy 500. Power won the 2018 race after qualifying third at 228.607 mph.
“I don’t think it really matters where you start,” said Power, a 43-year-old native of Australia and Team Penske’s senior ace. “I think you win this race from anywhere. It would just be a nice box to tick. I haven’t had many shots at getting a pole here, so to be in the game is really nice. We’ll see. I’ll do everything I can.”
Team Penske is poised to record just the second three-car/front-row sweep by one organization in Indy 500 history. Not surprisingly, Team Penske first achieved the feat in 1988 with pole-sitter Rick Mears, No. 2 qualifier Danny Sullivan and No. 3 qualifier Al Unser.
Josef Newgarden – Indianapolis 500 Qualifying – Photo by Joe Skibinski
Newgarden, “Scotty Mac” and Power were the three fastest drivers, respectively, during qualifying simulations on “Fast Friday,” when INDYCAR increased turbo boost pressure from 1.3 bar to 1.5 bar. That technical adjustment added approximately 100 horsepower to the 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged Honda and Chevrolet V-6 engines powering the field.
“It was an OK run,” Newgarden said of his effort. “I was wanting a little bit more, but I think all three of our cars are really solid, which is great to see. The team has been working really hard. Excited to be here in the Shell car as always, just like last year. We’ll see where it trends and what we can do (today).”
Power and his teammates benefitted from favorable positions in the qualifying draw and made their sole four-lap attempts in the first hour of the six-hour, 50-minute session, when track and air temperatures were coolest. Some savvy strategy by team-owner Roger Penske also factored into the results.
“We would have liked to have run in the heat, but Roger didn’t want us to go out,” Power said. “It’s never easy, those four laps, especially Turn 3 today. It’s quite loose-off. Turn 1 and 2 were comfortable, which is good, but Turn 3 and 4 is tough. I wouldn’t have trimmed any more than that. To me, that was on the limit.
“I think (Arrow McLaren’s) Alexander Rossi is the one who could break up the all-Penske front row, but I think one of us will get the pole. We put a lot of work in. All the cars are about the same speed.”
NBC will air three hours of live coverage today beginning at 3 p.m. (EDT). Top 12 Qualifying from 3:05-4:05 p.m. will determine the Firestone Fast Six that will compete for the NTT P1 Award from 5:25-5:55 p.m. In between those sessions, Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Katherine Legge and rookie Nolan Siegel of Dale Coyne Racing will compete for the three final spots during Last Chance Qualifying from 4:15-5:15 p.m.
Practice for the Top 12 is scheduled from noon-1 p.m., with a final practice for the Last Chance Qualifiers from 1-2 p.m.
Race Day coverage is scheduled for Sunday, May 26, beginning at 11 a.m. (EDT) on NBC, Peacock, Universo and the INDYCAR Radio Network.
Joining the Penske teammates in the Top 12 Qualifying session are Rossi, the 2016 Indy 500 winner (233.069 mph Saturday, fourth); Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global (232.764, fifth); Indy 500 rookie and 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson of Arrow McLaren/Rick Hendrick (232.563, sixth); Felix Rosenqvist of Meyer Shank Racing (232.547, seventh); Santino Ferrucci of A.J. Foyt Racing (232.496, eighth); two-time Indy 500 champion Takuma Sato of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (232.473, ninth); Pato O’Ward of Arrow McLaren (232.434, 10th); Rinus VeeKay of Ed Carpenter Racing (232.419, 11th); and 2014 Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing (232.385, 12th).
Larson’s versatility was on full display during his first two attempts at qualifying an open-wheel car at IMS. “It was great. Good to get in and be sixth,” Larson said. “I’m happy with that. A really cool day, a really cool experience this whole time and this whole week, especially with qualifying. Pretty awesome experience and fun to go that fast.
“Happy with the balance of the car and proud of the team. Great to be in the show, and a huge thank you to Arrow McLaren, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, especially Rick Hendrick. Just an awesome opportunity and having a blast so far, too. Honestly, I feel like the nerves were a lot less going the second time, even when not completing the first run. I just felt less nervous.”
Larson is attempting to complete “The Double” of racing in the Indy 500 and Cup’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 26.
Gavin Ward, Arrow McLaren’s Team Principal, said Larson continues to exceed expectations. “Kyle is one of the best drivers I’ve ever worked with, for sure. Without a doubt,” Ward said. “I cannot believe how well he has done here. I know I’m over the moon, Arrow McLaren is over the moon and Hendrick Motorsports is certainly over the moon with how things are going so far.
“We’ll just keep trying to execute from here. I think some people thought he wouldn’t be quite as far (up the grid) as that. I thought he had the chance to be about where he is. Happy to see it come to fruition.”
Ferrucci’s effort provided a much-needed morale boost for the team owned by native Texan and INDYCAR legend A.J. Foyt Jr., first four-time winner of the Indy 500. Ferrucci’s early qualifying run in the No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet at an average of 232.496 mph placed him fifth. Once everyone had made at least one run, the native of Connecticut slipped to eighth _ still safely in the Fast 12.
“He’s a good race driver and he’s a super guy along with it, and that’s what I like about him,” the 89-year-old Foyt said of his lead driver.
“We were pretty good,” said Ferrucci, who finished third last year behind winner Newgarden and runnerup/2022 Indy 500 champ Ericsson. “Chevrolet power is obviously the motor to be on it, looks like today. Very thankful for that, for them, and for Homes For Our Troops. We’ll see where we’re at when it’s over.”
O’Ward, a native of Mexico with family ties to San Antonio, admitted his four-lap attempt in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was on the edge.
“I think I might have lost a couple of hairs today, but we made it to Top 12 Qualifying,” O’Ward said. “Obviously, we still have some work to do in order to have a shot at the Firestone Fast Six, but it was a great recovery by the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team considering where we started the day. I’m proud of everybody for moving forward and getting it done. Advancing to (Sunday) was the goal and we achieved it.”
Sweden’s Rosenqvist emerged as one of the bright spots for the Honda camp, which placed only three drivers among the Top 12. “We finished seventh, a really good day for MSR and Honda,” Rosenqvist said. “A super-solid run. We had a late draw so it definitely felt as though there might be a bit more in it. I definitely feel as though we’re in contention for the Fast Six, we just have to get through Fast 12 first. It’s going to be hot, very similar to today, so it will be challenging. It always is at IMS.”
Team Penske and Arrow McLaren each placed three drivers in the Top 12. Eight teams overall are represented among the Top 12.
VeeKay cranked-out a dramatic run into the Top 12 on Saturday’s penultimate qualifying attempt in the No. 21 askROI Chevrolet. The run capped a thrash by the Ed Carpenter Racing team to rebuild the car after VeeKay crashed in Turn 3 at 11:14 a.m. on just the fourth overall attempt of the day. A native of The Netherlands, VeeKay then made one waved-off attempt and a successful attempt of 231.166 mph in mid-afternoon that put him toward the back of the Top 30 before his nerve-wracking final run.
That turn of events kept alive VeeKay’s chance of qualifying inside the top four for each of his five Indy 500s. VeeKay qualified second last May, his career-best Indy start.
“Rollercoaster times three,” VeeKay said of his day with the team owned by hometown favorite son Carpenter. “Started the day out with the biggest heartbreak there is. We were on the edge of the last row, and then the team _ this is magic right here. They made it happen. The car felt awesome. This crew, they deserve a thousand dinners and a lot of beer.”
Meanwhile, four-time Indy 500 champion Helio Castroneves of Meyer Shank Racing placed 20th overall in the No. 06 Cleveland-Cliffs Honda, his first qualifying session of the 2024 INDYCAR season as the team’s minority owner. “The Cliffs car was actually very, very good today,” the popular Brazilian said. “We were almost at the end of the field to qualify when we had our first run. We’re not where we want to be but the car is good _ and we’re in the race. Let’s go get it.” Castroneves is chasing an historic fifth Indy 500 victory.
At the other end of the grid, Rahal entered the 2.5-mile oval just before the clock struck 5:50 p.m. to end qualifying, but he waved-off the run after just one lap due to lack of speed in his No. 15 United Rentals Honda. This will be the second straight year in the Last Chance Qualifying session for Rahal, who failed to qualify for last year’s race but eventually competed as a substitute for the injured Stefan Wilson.
There were 74 qualifying attempts during a typically frantic day in which air temperatures reached the low 80s, topped in Indianapolis 500 history only by the 84 attempts on the first day last year.
Results of Day 1 qualifying Saturday for the 108th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge NTT IndyCar Series event on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with rank, car number in parentheses, driver, engine, time and speed in parentheses:
1. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 02:34.0053 (233.758 mph)
2. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 02:34.2863 (233.332)
3. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 02:34.3124 (233.293)
4. (7) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 02:34.4609 (233.069)
5. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 02:34.6634 (232.764)
6. (17) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 02:34.7965 (232.563)
7. (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Honda, 02:34.8074 (232.547)
8. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 02:34.8415 (232.496)
9. (75) Takuma Sato, Honda, 02:34.8566 (232.473)
10. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 02:34.8826 (232.434)
11. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 02:34.8930 (232.419)
12. (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, 02:34.9153 (232.385)
13. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 02:34.9616 (232.316)
14. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 02:34.9682 (232.306)
15. (6) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, 02:35.0184 (232.230)
16. (11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 02:35.0504 (232.183)
17. (20) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, 02:35.1608 (232.017)
18. (4) Kyffin Simpson, Honda, 02:35.2069 (231.948)
19. (98) Marco Andretti, Honda, 02:35.2458 (231.890)
20. (06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, 02:35.2587 (231.871)
21. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 02:35.2723 (231.851)
22. (78) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, 02:35.2750 (231.847)
23. (41) Sting Ray Robb, Chevrolet, 02:35.2888 (231.826)
24. (33) Christian Rasmussen, Chevrolet, 02:35.3852 (231.682)
25. (66) Tom Blomqvist, Honda, 02:35.4554 (231.578)
26. (77) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, 02:35.4982 (231.514)
27. (8) Linus Lundqvist, Honda, 02:35.5034 (231.506)
28. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 02:35.5308 (231.465)
29. (24) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 02:35.6803 (231.243)
30. (30) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, 02:35.7768 (231.100)
