IndyCar
Marcus Armstrong Leads Qualifying for Chip Ganassi Racing at St. Pete
ST. PETERSBURG, FL (March 9, 2024) – Saturday’s knockout style qualifying session on the streets of St. Petersburg is a testament to how competitive the NTT INDYCAR SERIES is, but for the Chip Ganassi Racing team it was a somewhat disappointing day as nobody from the five-car team made it into the Firestone Fast Six.
Marcus Armstrong was the fastest qualifier of the group posting a fast lap of 59.6127-seconds in the No. 11 Ridgeline Lubricants Honda during the second session. Scott Dixon was right behind Armstrong in the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda, turning a quick lap of 59.8483 around the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit. Armstrong will start 10th and Dixon 11th.
“The car was driving well, and I thought we were taking the appropriate amount of risk,” explained Armstrong, the 2023 INDYCAR Rookie of the Year. “However, I am pretty disappointed with myself in that second round. It’s a shame because I felt quite confident out there. I touched the wall a few times, but this Ridgeline Lubricants Honda is pretty rock solid. We were faster last year here in the race, so I have all the faith in the world that we are going to go forward.”
“I think for us, it’s really hard to find the capability of the car,” said Dixon, the six-time series Champion. “You push hard, you push a little bit harder and then you lose the front. When you’re in the sweet spot, everything’s just easier. Kudos to [Marcus] Armstrong there; that there was the best of our cars at the moment. We will continue to work hard tonight and prepare for tomorrow.”
Scott Dixon, driver of the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Two-time and defending series Champion Alex Palou didn’t even make it out of the first round, just missing out on advancing by posting a best-lap of 59.7897 in the No. 10 DHL Honda, good for the 13th starting spot.
The No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda driven by Alex Palou enters pit road at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
“It was not the qualifying session that we wanted,” said Palou. “We just needed a little bit more and had a bit of a messy session. But, we feel good about the way the car is responding. It’ll be tough starting from P13, but it’s a long race with 100 laps so we can make it.”
Rookies Linus Lundqvist and Kyffin Simpson will start 19th and 23rd respectively. Lundqvist’s fast lap was 1:00:0034 in the No. 8 American Legion Be The One Honda and Simpson’s was 1:00:2956 in the No. 4 Journie Rewards Honda as the pair get acclimated to a new series and new tracks.
“Obviously a little bit disappointed in how qualifying went, as we thought we would be a bit further up than P19,” said Lundqvist, the 2022 INDYNXT Champion. “But it is a long race and we’re going to try to play it smart and make up some spots on Sunday. We’re all here to fight for race wins and pole positions so we’re hopeful for a better one tomorrow.”
Linus Lundqvist, driver of the No. 8 American Legion Chip Ganassi Racing Honda on the Pit Stand at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
“Our first qualifying was just okay,” said Simpson. “We didn’t finish all that well, but I felt a lot more comfortable in the car and that is important for tomorrow. We’ll look through potential strategy options as we will be looking to make our way forward in the race.”
Kyffin Simpson, driver of the No. 4 Journie Rewards Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, walks along pit road at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Coverage of the 100-lap Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg begins at Noon ET on NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.
IndyCar St. Pete Starting Lineup
SPEEDWAY, IN (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – Alex Palou is continuing his incredible 2025 by posting the fastest 4-lap average on Saturday’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES Day 1 of qualifying for the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.
Palou’s 4-lap average speed of 233.043 mph on his only qualifying attempt of the day in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda was good enough to stay atop the charts as positions 1-30 were ‘locked-in’ in the 33-car field.
“Super happy,” said Palou, who has four of the first five events of 2025. “I don’t know if there’s more (speed in the car), but there’s always more. The line between more and too much is very thin here at IMS. We’ll see what we have for tomorrow (Sunday).”
Palou and the 11 other fastest drivers will participate in Top 12 Qualifying at 4:05 p.m. ET Sunday, which will whittle the field to the Firestone Fast Six that will compete for the NTT P1 Award at 6:25 p.m.
Rinus VeeKay and Jacob Abel of Dale Coyne Racing, Marcus Armstrong of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian and 2020 “500” pole sitter Marco Andretti of Andretti Herta w/Marco & Curb-Agajanian will compete for the three final spots in the 33-car starting field in Last Chance Qualifying from 5:15-6:15 p.m.
Armstrong crashed in the morning practice and his MSR team thrashed to get another car prepared to get on track.
Colton Herta suffered a scary crash as his No. 26 Gainbridge Honda lost grip in Turn 1 on his first qualifying lap.
Herta’s Andretti Global team immediately went to work on a backup and Herta was able to go back out at 4:45 p.m. Herta qualified 29th at 230.192.
Graham Rahal was the final driver to earn a guaranteed spot on Saturday. Rahal qualified 30th at 229.863 mph in the No. 15 United Rentals Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Indy 500 Day 1 Qualifying 2025 Indy 500 Qualifying Procedure
SPEEDWAY, IN (May 16, 2025) – Scott Dixon is no stranger to speed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and he proved it again on Fast Friday, posting the fastest qualifying simulation during practice for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500.
Dixon’s four-lap average was 232.561 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
“I think there’s still some good speed still left in the car,” said Dixon, the 2008 Indianapolis 500 winner. “The car is really smooth, and I’m pretty conservative, as well. So, we’ll see. Who knows what tomorrow (Saturday) is going to bring? I think conditions are going to be pretty tough.”
Two-time reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou, who has won four of the first five races this season, posted the second fastest qualifying sim of the day with a four-lap average of 232.307 in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin posted the fastest lap of the day, a 233.954 mph, in the No. 3 Pennzoil Team Penske Chevrolet but with the benefit of an aerodynamic tow.
It was not all roses for CGR as second-year driver Kyffin Simpson suffered a nasty crash coming out of Turn 4. Simpson’s No. 8 Journie Rewards Honda briefly got airborne, came down on its left side before landing on its wheels and sliding across the track and making contact with inside wall on pit lane. Simpson was not hurt but will go to a backup car.
Simpson wasn’t the only one who went for a wild ride. Arrow McLaren’s Kyle Larson spun in Turn 3, sending the No. 17 Hendrick Cars.com Chevrolet into the SAFER barrier.
Larson was not hurt and after repairs were made to his car, he was able to return to the track for a shakedown run in the final hour of practice.
Saturday at Indianapolis starts with a practice session from 8:30-9:30 a.m., with two 30-minute groups (FS2, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).
The first day of PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying takes place from 11 a.m.-5:50 p.m. (11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., FS1; 1:30-4 p.m., FS2; 4-6 p.m., FOX; FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network) where positions 13-30 in the starting field will be set.
Sunday will be day 2 of Qualifying with the Last Row Shootout, Top 12 and Firestone Fast Six qualifying sessions deciding the rest of the 33-car starting grid.
The 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 25 (10 a.m. ET, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).
SPEEDWAY, IN (May 14, 2025) – Alex Palou is leading the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Indianapolis 500 speed charts after Wednesday’s rain-shortened practice for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.
Palou, a three-time series Champion, was quickest at 227.546 mph in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. It was the fastest lap of two days of preparations this week for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
“A couple of good traffic runs,” said Palou, who is leading the 2025 Championship standing. “The car is feeling good. You always want it to feel a little bit better, but so far, so good. We did a little bit of (running in) traffic. It’s always tough when people are in different run plans.”
Team Penske’s Will Power, the 2018 Indianapolis 500 winner, continued his strong month posting the second fastest speed at 225.584 in the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet.
“I think we’ve got a reasonable package right now,” said Power. “Seems very difficult to pass when you are in the back of the pack, but car stayed really consistent through the rounds. I felt pretty good in traffic. speed doesn’t quite matter. It’s more about handling, which looks like everyone’s car is handling well too.”
Right behind Power was teammate Josef Newgarden was third quick at at 225.545 in the No. 2 Shell V-Power NiTRO+ Chevrolet. Newgarden is trying to become the first driver to win the Indianapolis 500 in three consecutive years.
“Been up and down with the weather, but for the most part we’ve had really good running,” said Newgarden, a two-time series Champion. “Even yesterday where some rain interrupted the beginning, we still got a lot of track time, and we got a lot of track time today. No complaints so far.”
2008 Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon was fourth fastest at at 225.092 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Conor Daly rounded out the Top 5 at 224.931 in the No. 76 Chevrolet.
Practice started 68 minutes late due to heavy rain this morning over the 2.5-mile oval. There were further delays of 54 minutes and 15 minutes in the afternoon due to passing sprinkles.
The forecast on Thursday calls for a stray shower in the morning with hot and humid temperatures and a chance of showers later in the day.
All the fastest laps on Wednesday came with the benefit of an aerodynamic “tow” from leading cars, as teams continued to focus on finding stable setups in traffic for Race Day.
Wednesday’s delayed start prevented Tony Kanaan from taking his ‘refresher’ test, so he will attempt that Thursday morning when on-track activity opens at 10 a.m. Kanaan is a standby driver for Kyle Larson in case weather delays his attempt at the ‘double’.
The track will be open for practice for all cars from noon-6 p.m. (noon-4 p.m., FS2; 4-6 p.m., FS1; FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).
The 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 25 (10 a.m. ET, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network).
Christopher Bell outduels Joey Logano for first career NASCAR All-Star win
Alex Palou fastest on Day 1 of Indianapolis 500 qualifying
Rahmer and Norris Get Second Wins of the Season at Lincoln Speedway in Fallen Firefighters Memorial
Scott Dixon and Alex Palou lead qualifying simulations during Indy 500 Fast Friday
Alex Palou fastest in Indianapolis 500 practice as Ganassi and Penske top charts….again.
Alex Palou wins Sonsio Grand Prix at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Autocross for a cause as FastTrackPGH accelerates to cure Huntington’s Disease
Macri Snatches Sterner Memorial at Lincoln Speedway
Alex Palou’s last lap wins NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole position at Barber
