Should Indianapolis 500 qualifying be just a one day show? The last chance shootout resulted in almost an hour of no on track action. The shootout should probably be flexible depending on the number of cars involved. I will expand on this thought tomorrow.
What happened to Chevy? The engines seemed equal with Honda during the week, but they didn’t take kindly to the added boost. I hope they are more competitive during the race.
One thing I realized I was missing yesterday- the sounds of the cars firing to go onto to the track for their qualifying runs, and th3e sounds of the cars on the backstretch. The PA crew for some reason thinks every moment has to be filled with their mostly inane chatter or bad 80 rock n roll music. Here is what I want from the PA- car location, lap number, speed, brief driver bio. I don’t want music during the out and warmup laps. I want to hear the cars. End of old man rant.
The forecast temperature for Sunday right now should make for a pleasant day for fans and possibly allow some passing. Warning- it’s only Monday and this is Indiana.
This weekend’s attendance was the biggest qualifying crowd since 2016. people were excited to get back to the speedway after last year. The big test comes next year, when we will see if qualifying cab draw the same or better crowd.
So few cars took advantage of the practice time offered this weekend. I wonder if those pre -qualifying periods will be reduced in the future. Only 5 of 14 cars took practice laps yesterday.
It seems like the pole winner for the Indianapolis 500 should get a special pole award sticker rather than the one given out at every other race.
The first three rows are a nice representation of the state of Indycar- veterans and young drivers competing against each other. I am comforted seeing that when the older drivers retire that there will be a smooth transition to the new stars.
Don’t play King of the Mountain with Scott Dixon. You will lose. Colton herta and Rinus VeeKay tried to knock Dixon off the pole for next Sunday’s Indianapolis 500. They came close, but couldn’t do it. Dixon won his fourth Indianapolis 500 pole by just 0,0197 seconds, 0.03 miles an hour. Just moments before, Herta had knocked Rinus Veekay off the pole by 0.0966 seconds, 0.1 miles an hour.
Scott dixon pulls in after his pole winning run. Photo by Tim Holle, Indycar
It was a history making front row. It is the youngest front row in history, despite Dixon’s advanced age of 40.. VeeKay is the youngest front row starter in history. Today’s pole is Dixon’s fourth at Indianapolis, tying him for second place all time with A. J. Foyt, Rex Mays, and Helio Castroneves. Dixon also won the pole for the 500 in 2008, 2015, and 2017.
The rest of the Fast nine saw several drivers change spots from yesterday. Helio Castroneves went from sixth to eighth, Tony Kanaan went from third to fifth. Alex Palou moved from seventh to sixth, and Ryan Hunter-Reay went from eighth to fifth.
VeeKay had a big wiggle in turn 1 on his lap, but he saved it to complete the lap. The bobble may have cost him the pole. VeeKay qualified fourth last year and now starts third. He is the fastest Chevy in the field again.
The first three rows have a mix of drivers that represent former series champions and 500 winners and the younger generation of drivers. Five of the first nine drivers are 40 or older and represent six 500 victories. Three are in their early twenties. Marcus Ericsson is 30.
The Last Row- Power’s Close Call
In the Last Chance Shootout, the biggest drama came on Will power’s qualifying run when his right rear tire hit the outside wall. It was a glancing blow and he completed the run to qualify for the middle of the last row. I heard that the tow link was broken, which meant he would have had to withdraw his time to repair it and possibly not have another chance to make the field. next Sunday will be Power’s worst career start will be Power’s worst career start.
Simona DeSilvestro made her qualifying run, then sat in her car for the remaining hour of the Last Chance period to see if she would need to go again. Neither Charlie Kimball nor R C Enerson had anything close to her speed. kimBall took two shots at her time, but didn’t come close.
Kimball had started the 500 for 10 consecutive years through 2020. Enerson, a rookie, and his new team, accomplished a lot just by putting a car together and having it run a qualifying set.
DeSilvestro’s team, Paretta Autosport, is a team consisting 75% or women on the crew, some of whom will be working the pits on race day. It is great to have a woman back in the field for the 500.
Beth Paretta, team owner, watches nervously as Simona DeSilvestro qualifies.Phot by James Black, Indycar Simona DeSilvestro waves to the crowd after clinching the final starting spot. Photo by Joe Skibinski, Indycar
I will have some thoughts on the qualifying weekend tomorrow. I wish to thank everyone for following along this weekend, which set a viewership record. I appreciate all of you.
Paddock, Paddock Penthouse, A Penthouse, B Penthouse , E, E Penthouse, Tower Terrace, Northwest Vista and Deck, Southeast Vista and deck.
Note: only limited sections open in all stands.
Parking:
North 40 is free. All other lots are paid. $10
Four former winners have a shot at the pole this afternoon in the Fast Nine shootout. That is a routine occurrence. Onf ormer winner will fight to make the field. That doesn’t happen often.
Scott Dixon, Tony Kanaan, Helio Castroneves, and Ryan Hunter-Reay earned a chance to run for the pole this afternoon. Dixon had the fastest time yesterday, Kanaan was third, Castroneves sixth, and Hunter-Reay eighth.
I think the pole battle is between Dixon, Kanaan, and Colton Herta. Dixon is favored, but don’t dismiss Herta’s chances.
On the other end of the field, five drivers, including 2018 winner Will Power, need to qualify for the final three spots in the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500. Power had the 31st fastest time yesterday, but the if three of the other four can outrun him, the 2014 series champion will sit out next Sunday. Power, one of the greatest qualifiers in Indycar history, will get one of the spots, but it may be tight. The cars are competing just against each other today, and not against the rest of the field.
Also looking for a spot on next Sunday’s grid are Simona DeSilvestro, Sage Karam, Charlie Kimball, and R C Enerson.
Stay tuned. this will be a fascinating day at both ends of the field.
Some photos from yesterday:
Can Helio Castroneves win another pole?Always nice to see Robert Wickens at the trackSimona DeSilvestro after her first qualifying run.
While Scott Dixon set the bar as the first qualifier, the hotter conditions as the day went on kept his closest challengers at bay. Tomorrow, Dixon will go last. His biggest challengers tomorrow will be Colton Herta ,Tony Kanaan, and Ed Carpenter. I would not be shocked to see Rinus VeeKay or Alex Palou make a strong as well.
Will Power had a tough day today and might have an even tougher day tomorrow. If I understand the rules correctly, power will be the fifth driver on track in the Last chance Shootout. The good news is he will know exactly what he needs. Still, Power sometimes puts a lot of pressure on himself. i hope he doesn’t allow that to get in his way.
It is a great achievement by Chip Ganassi Racing to get all four of their cars in the Fast Nine.
Helio Castroneves seems motivated to prove a point to his former team. he had a great qualifying effort today.
The fast nine by teams:
Gansssi 4
Carpenter 2
Andretti 2
Meyer Shank 1
I wonder how Alex Palou’s car will perform tomorrow after that hard hit he had on his second attempt.
Dalton Kellett played defense by making the late run with time running out. He prevented power from getting another chance.
I’m not sure Simona DeSilvestro has much more speed in that car. It would be a shame to see her miss the race. That team looks to be one of the more organized teams in the garage area.
Top Gun Racing achieved a lot just by having the car make a qualifying run. They don’t seem to have the pace to make the show. I hope they can build on their experience and come back in 2022 with a stronger program.
Disappointing runs- Alexander Rossi, Jack Harvey, Conor Daly, Takuma Sato, Graham Rahal, and Pato O’Ward. I thought a few of theses drivers would in the Fast Nine.
Nice surprises- Ryan Hunter-Reay in the Fast Nine, Ed Jones and Pietro Fittipaldi qualifying 11th and 13th.
Something you don’t see every year- The highest Team penske qualifier was Scott McLaughlin in 17th. Something is not right in this camp.
The drama tomorrow centers on power. Can the former race winner make the field, or will he join other former winners in failing to qualify? Remember Team Penske with former winners Al Unser, Jr. and Emerson Fittipaldi failed to qualify in 1995. Other former winners who have failed to qualify include Bobby Rahal, Johnny Rutherford, and Johnnie Parsons. Parsons did start the 1957 race as a last minute substitute.
Off Track
I hope the video boards and the scoring pylon work consistently tomorrow. For much of the day, timing information and standings were missing. Late in the day it would have been nice to have the time to beat displayed in the upper left corner of the screen.
It seemed to be a normal sized qualification day crowd.. Most people rehearsed for the June 7 lifting of the mask mandate in Marion County. IMS needs to step up enforcement. With general admission seating for the entire facility, social distancing was virtually non existent. IMS should have sold reserved seating for today and tomorrow.
It was nice to see the garage area come to life for the first time this week. there was a lot of energy among the teams, and I saw the most fans in gasoline Alley that i have seen all week.
The Fast Nine:
1
9
Scott Dixon
Chip Ganassi Racing
Honda
231.828
2
26
Colton Herta
Andretti Autosport
Honda
231.648
3
48
Tony Kanaan
Chip Ganassi Racing
Honda
231.639
4
20
Ed Carpenter
Ed Carpenter Racing
Chevy
231.616
5
21
Rinus VeeKay
Ed Carpenter Racing
Chevy
231.483
6
06
Helio Castroneves
Meyer Shank Racing
Honda
231.164
7
10
Alex Palou
Chip Ganassi Racing
Honda
231.145
8
28
Ryan Hunter-Reay
Andretti Autosport
Honda
231.139
9
8
Marcus Ericsson
Chip Ganassi Racing
Honda
231.104
The five who need to qualify tomorrow. The fastest three make the race.
Scott Dixon qualified first and no one has been able to match his four lap average of 231.320 mph. Colton Herza, Tony Kansas, and Ed Carpenter put up a challenge for two laps, but their last two laps brought their average below Dixon’s.
The Fast Nine as of 3:15 Eastern:
Dixon
Herta
Kanaan
Ed Carpenter
Rinus VeeKay
Helio Castroneves
Alex Palou
Ryan Hunter-Reay
Marcus Ericsson
The botzom five, two of whom will miss the race:
Saze Karam
Will Power
Charlie Kimball
Simona De Silverstro
R C Emerson
Qualifications run until 5:50 Eastern. Coverage is currently on NBCSN as well as on Peacock
It’s time to build the grid. For the first time in two years, fans will get to witness qualifying in person. The size of yesterday’s fast friday crowd indicates there could be a huge turnout today. More grandstands are open today, including parts of the Northwest and Southeast Vistas.
here is what you need to know:
Today’s Schedule:
Gates Open 8:00am 6:00pm
Indianapolis 500 Practice 9:30am 10:30am
Indianapolis 500 Qualifying 12:00pm 5:50pm
12:00 PM – 2:00 PM ET
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET
3:00 PM – 6:00 PM ET
Grandstands open:
Paddock, Paddock Penthouse, A Penthouse, B Penthouse , E, E Penthouse, Tower Terrace, Northwest Vista and Deck, Southeast Vista and deck.
Note: only limited sections open in all stands.
Parking:
North 40 is free. All other lots are paid. It cost $10 Friday; may be $15 today.
Since cars and drivers can make multiple attempts, the order doesn’t matter as much as it used to. The heat of mid day will probably determine when a second run occurs. It will be interesting to see who pulls out of the line to wait for better conditions.
I hope to have an update around 3 pm. Enjoy the day no matter where you are viewing from.
Scott Dixon had the fastest single lap of 233.302 mph on unusual final day of practice before qualifications start tomorrow for the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500. The lap was with a tow. Today is the second day this week that Dixon had the fastest lap.
It was a different type of practice day. The NNT Indycar Series allowed each car an additional 85-90 horsepower, which helped increase speeds by about five to seven miles an hour. Most of the day saw cars on track by themselves, or at most maybe two other cars also running. All the teams were doing simulated qualifying runs, and the drivers seemed to allow each other space to get their runs in. Each team hoped to do four or five runs today. In the final half hour several cars hit the track for a final shakedown. It was the busiest time all day.
The best lap results:
While a great single lap is nice, tomorrow it’s an average of four laps tha makes up the qualifying speed. The best four lap averages today:Marcus Ericsson – 231.950 mph
Colton Herta – 231.726 mph
Pato O’Ward – 231.522 mph
Alexander Rossi – 230.999 mph
Stefan Wilson – 230.844 mph
Takuma Sato – 230.819 mph
Ed Carpenter – 230.423 mph
Santino Ferrucci – 230.364 mph
Ed Jones – 230.251 mph
Rinus VeeKay – 230.234 mph
Qualifying happens with no other cars on track. here are the cars who were best running alone:
Alexander rossi had the best lap without a tow from another car.
Saturday’s qualifying will lock in starters 10-30. Qualifiers 1-9 will each get one qualifying run Sunday to determine the pole. The last rwo will also have a Sunday session among qualifiers 31st -35th, with the fastest three on Sunday starting the race.
Big Crowd, Race Atmosphere
Today was closer to a normal day at the track. The crowd was by far the largest of the week. It took me 30 minutes to park, something I used to experience on qualifying days. The B and E penthouse stands were quite full.
The Pagoda Plaza also had fans everywhere, much more like a typical day at the track. IMS will have more grandstands open tomorrow, including some in turns 2 and 4.
Pole Favorites?
We could sse the youngest pole sitter in history. We also might see the okldest pole sitter in history. This is a wide open battle. My Fast Nine picks who will be going for the top spot on Sunday are Dixon, Alexander Rossi, Takuma Sato, Marcus Ericsson, Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter, Alex Palou, Colton Herta, and Josef Newgarden.
Who’s Going Home?
Two drivers will not make the race. I think R. C . Enerson and Dalton Kellett will be on the outside looking in after Sunday.
I will be abck early in the morning with a preview of the day, including seating and parking information. I will also have the qualifying order.
The Pit Window by Mike Silver 