There is now a third certainty in life. In addition to dea and taxes, add Ale Palou on pole for an IndyCar race. Alex Palou won his fifth straight pole for 2026 and joins an elite list of consecutive pole winners:

1. Bobby Unser 8 (1971-72)

2. Mario Andretti 7 (1965-66)

3. Alex Zanardi 6 (1996-97

4. Mario Andretti 5 (1984) 4T. Danny Sullivan 5 (1988), Palou

Incredibly, all-time pole winner Will Power never won five consecutive poles. Palou was just sixth fastest in practice this morning, but the team returned to yesterday’s settings to allow the points leader to stay at the front. David Malukas starts second for the second race in a row.

Palou’s lap of 1:43.6615 beat Malukas by 0.29 seconds.

Marcus Armstrong was the favorite going into qualifying, but he ended the session third, just ahead of teammate Felix Rosenqvist. Marcus Ericsson and Scott McLaughlin complete the Fast Six.

“It’s incredible, five in a row this year,” Palou said. “This team, man. This team and everyone on it is giving me the best car, all the power we needed. We suffered quite a lot there in Q2. Couldn’t really get the lap we wanted, but the car was super rapid.”

Notes

Road America’s IndyCar weekend is looking a lot like the Sebring 12 Hour race. While roaming the track this morning, I saw more campers, cars, and golf carts than I have ever seen here. The last two years that I attended Sebring I had the same feeling of an event that was bulging at the seams with vehicles are shoehorned into the place, and I trust management here has a plan to prevent that from happening.

Weird thought- How many pounds over minimum weight would the 10 car be if IndyCar implemented Balance of Performance?

Today’s crowd was massive. I have never seen the grandstands so filled for qualify and practice. Tomorrow’s attendance may shatter the record for IndyCar here.

Results

Note Santino Ferrucci and Alexander Rossi will be assessed six grid positions each. Official starting lineup will post tomorrow morning.