While Fast Friday was already windy at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, conditions were even windier on Saturday. That wind would claim its first victim early in the day during the practice session. A Meyer Shank Racing driver experienced instability in Turn 1, managed to catch the car initially, but lost control during a second moment of oversteer and spun hard into the wall backwards. Armstrong was cleared after medical checks, but his car suffered heavy damage.
Another major crash followed during qualifying: Colton Herta lost control of his #26 car coming out of Turn 1, spun into the wall backwards, launched into the air, and slid upside down all the way to Turn 2. Herta was also able to exit the car unharmed, though his vehicle sustained significant damage.
After the first round of qualifying attempts, a familiar name topped the timing sheets once again: Alex Palou. The championship leader was a fraction faster than Scott McLaughlin and Pato O’Ward. Josef Newgarden skipped his first qualifying run but went on to post the third-fastest time. The third Penske entry, driven by Will Power, struggled and sat only tenth after two runs.
Following the earlier crashes, Andretti Global and Meyer Shank Racing worked hard on their backup cars to get their drivers back into qualifying. Although Andretti Global got started later, the team won the battle: with an hour remaining, Herta completed a full qualifying run and slotted into 29th. Fifteen minutes later, Armstrong also went out but wasn’t fast enough to break into the field.
In the final hour — with slightly cooler and faster conditions — the battle was on for the final spots in the Fast 12. Alexander Rossi made four attempts but ultimately fell short, marking the worst Indy 500 qualifying result for Ed Carpenter Racing. Christian Lundgaard did manage to break into the top twelve, making him the second McLaren driver in the group alongside Pato O’Ward.
The final 20 minutes were all about securing a place in the top 30, which guarantees direct qualification for the race. At that point, Marco Andretti, Rinus VeeKay, Jacob Abel, and Armstrong occupied the dangerous 31st through 34th spots. Andretti, VeeKay, and Armstrong all made another qualifying attempt, but none managed to secure a spot in the field. That means Sunday’s battle for the final three grid positions will be between Andretti, VeeKay, Abel, and Armstrong.
Conor Daly wrapped up the day with a blistering run, nearly breaking into the Fast 12. In the end, the Juncos Hollinger Racing driver came up five hundredths of a second short, landing in 13th.
With Daly missing out on the Fast 12, the drivers who will compete for pole position on Sunday are: Palou, McLaughlin, Newgarden, O’Ward, Dixon, a very surprising Shwartzman, Malukas, Rosenqvist, Sato, Power, Ericsson, and Lundgaard.
Full results of the qualifying session at Indianapolis
PhotographyPenske Entertainment
