Alex Palou from Chip Ganassi Racing secured pole position for the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500 after he set the fastest four-lap average of 234.217mph around the 2.5-mile oval, narrowly defeating Rinus VeeKay from Ed Carpenter Racing. Palou signalled his intent with an opening lap of 235.131mph, and his four-lap average was 234.217mph.
VeeKay will start second
VeeKay will start second with a speed of 234.211mph, just 0.004s and 0.006mph slower than Palou. He expressed his disappointment by stating, “I got everything out of it, but it’s just so tight.”
Rosenqvist settles for third
Felix Rosenqvist from Arrow McLaren, who was the top qualifying pacesetter, fell below the 235mph barrier required on the opening lap, and could only manage third with 234.114mph.
Ferrucci starts in fourth position
Santino Ferrucci from AJ Foyt Racing will start fourth, but he encountered some trouble as he got high in Turn 1 on his opening lap and couldn’t repeat the speed he showed in Top 12 qualifying. His average speed was 233.661mph, and he admitted “that wasn’t what we wanted” on the radio.
Other notable performances include Pato O’Ward, who lapped his Honda-powered Arrow McLaren in 233.756mph for fifth position, and Scott Dixon, who was hunting for his third consecutive pole for Ganassi but battled loose handling after a strong opener that produced 233.151mph for sixth. Dixon reported that “the run for us was too on the nose, it was super loose and scrubbing speed from the get-go.”
Palou expressed his happiness and gratitude after the race by saying, “That was fun, very fun… It means the world to me, we knew it was going to be tight, they gave the fastest car to me… Watching [the other drivers] was tougher than doing the four laps.”
The Indianapolis 500 is set to take place on Sunday, May 30th, with fans in attendance after last year’s race was held without spectators due to COVID-19 restrictions.
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